If you follow me on twitter you’re already privy to the top secret bottom not secret info: I didn’t PR and I didn’t go sub 3:20.
Instead, I had the world’s worst schizophrenic pacing. Perfect, at least I hit my “B goal”.
10K (distance)
00:48:45 (time)
07:51 (pace)
13.1M
01:42:01
07:45
16M
02:06:01
08:17 <—?!
20M
02:35:09
07:17 <—?!
Avg. Pace
07:45
I don’t know what happened really; I guess I just didn’t show up mentally ready. The first half I felt like I was really pushing the pace when I wasn’t, and I hit a mental wall at mile 11. AT MILE 11.
My garmin was off from the beginning and died at mile 12 (even though it charged all last night) so maybe that partially explains why my splits were so crazy.
Am I disappointed? Absolutely. I can run better than that. I should run better than that. But as my husband and mom both reminded me, it’s just another race… it’s not like I was on the cusp of making the London 2012 team. touché.
Pics from the day…
All my gear laid out and ready to go for the 5am wakeup call. We left by 6 and parked right before 7. right on time. And then we had an extra 29 minutes since the race started late. <–MAJOR RACE PET PEEVE
The start in the dark
So sexy, I know. It really wasn’t that cold… except when I took off my gear again and the race was delayed a second time.
Ate my PickyBar about 30 minutes before the alleged start time. Sorry, I can’t stop talking about it: when you charge $145 for race (at the expo) start it on time, not a half hour late!
Seriously RnR, get your crap together… and maybe one day I’ll get mine together too.
Because I always get emails asking, here’s outfit details:
**The headband is a BICband; no, these babies don’t move. Your pacing might be all over the map, but your headband won’t be.
**The Nike tank top was a gift from my brother and sister-in-law N and I’m not sure of the style or where it’s from.
**Sports bra is from Target
**The skirt is from RunningSkirts – my mom bought it for me a couple years ago
**The running sunglasses are Native
**The pink shoelaces are from FitApproach
**Shoes are Mizuno WaveRider 14’s
The Start.
The Finish.
Not exactly happy but I have no one to blame but myself. Don’t you hate it when that happens?!
I handed my medal to my man, said I didn’t do it and that was it.
He responded, You just ran a marathon; you should be proud of that. Hate it when he’s right.
Love it when he stops for coffee without me even asking.
French Vanilla coffee makes everything better.
Eeeer, erase that. Prosecco makes everything better.
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{ 88 comments… read them below or add one }
aww..I am sorry…but you should be proud that you ran it..and yay for a cheerleader! I bet he felt so bad for you at the halfway knowing you were having a tough time.
I am proud of him for stopping for coffee!
There is plenty of time to PR in the future..you are amazing..you will do it!
Glad you celebrated with coffee and champagne sounds perfect to me!!
BTW for feeling so terrible the first half you sure picked up your pace there and really killed it at the end… awesome job. I hate when technology fails you it can totally kill your focus.
Also, your outfit was adorable
If there was a fashion award you should’ve won it.
SARAH you DID do it. You’ve run 25 marathons!! You are incredible.
And your time is still amazing. I don’t know what on earth I would have done if my Garmin had been acting up like that.
Oh and by the way I have the same thick banded gold sparkle headband that you’re wearing in your last photo. Goes perfectly with your champagne.
Hey nothing anyone can say will really change how you feel, they were YOUR goals and you didn’t meet them. Bummer. I feel ya on that one. I always have to have a little wallow in it pity fest and grumpy attitude for a bit, even if everyone else thinks I should be happy with what/how I did. I think your time was still pretty sick, but YOU didn’t and I totally get where you’re coming from. Gotta have the shitty races to really REALLY appreciate the good ones right? Onward and upward!!
At least you looked super hot while you ran!
First time commenter, but been reading for awhile… Just had to add, I also ran today, and did not meet my goal, with hip pain in the last 8 miles making my pace grind to a halt. But my bic band didn’t move! I looked for you on the other side during the out and back section planning to yell something, so if nothing else, you running today helped me have something to do for those couple miles!
I definitely saw you pass at mile 20 and you were well ahead of the 330 pace group and I kept thinking, holy crap, she IS a machine. I was too nervous to yell to you. I was a little starstruck Baaaahaaa!
Katherine is right. You still should be proud – 25 marathons! I haven’t even run my first yet (March 4th in NOLA).
But I totally understand how you feel. I seem to always have that grumpy “I could’ve done better” attitude at the end of a race, even when I hit a goal. Strange. We all push ourselves so hard that sometimes it’s really ok when we’re having an off day. Although when everyone else is high fiving you and all you want to do is curl up in the corner and drown yourself in a bag of Cheetos I always feel guilty like I’m being a little punk!
I am sure you are sick of hearing it, but thats still an AWESOME time. and 20 minutes faster than the time i get when i am dreaming about finishing a marathon. Even in my dreams i could never keep up with you! Keep up the great running
25 marathons is huge! Sorry you had a bad race, but I’m sure all the hard runs you’ve been doing will pay off and a PR is going to happen soon!
This may not be your “best” or “better” race. But you SURE did another 26 miles. Just treat it like an expensive long run with lots of your fans and papparazzi running around you.
You are a rock star!! I don’t care what the chip or garmin says or doesn’t say. Congrats. And I bet you looked the cutest out there in your skirt, which is worth more than PRing:) You’ll get that sub-3:20 in 2012.
Even though it wasn’t what you wanted, I think you still did great. There are many of us who would love to have your time, although I’m sure you hear that all the time and it probably doesn’t help!
What’s with the black box over your bib number?
i dont want to get murdered.
Illegally purchasing a race bib will do that to you!
hahahaha! Sandy told you!
I was wondering about the black box too!
Amazing job on 25! I really enjoy your blog.
Sorry that you feel that you failed and didn’t accomplish what you hoped for, but look on the bright side…you still rocked it! You are such an amazing person/runner and such an inspiration to me. I hope to someday be as fast as you are! you totally rocked it and you looked AAHHmazing!!! Happy that you got to celebrate with coffee and of course perseco! and as dr. seuss says: “Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one.” ~ and even though today was not fun and not good, you gave it your all and your body finished across the finish line…keep your chin up….you are amazing! ((hugs))
Super lame that they started late. I would be annoyed by that too. I for one think you did amazing! But if you’re not satisfied at least you can have redemption next time around, right? (And for I think that could be next weekend since you run so many marathons!)
My corral had to wait an extra couple of minutes at the start because of a train! But at least we weren’t already started and then have to stop. But my serious pet peeve was trying to find the correct parking lot at the end. They had the half-ers park in two different spots and after the race I asked cops or volunteers which way to the blue lot and no one knew what the he** I was talking about. I wandered around for literally 2 hours looking for it! I was seriously exhausted (I pushed my butt and PRed by almost 3 minutes only to add another 6 miles of wandering looking for my car!) Once I found the lot I walked over and found my car no problem! The ironic thing is that the lot was less than a half a mile away from where I finished.
Aw, I am sorry you were disappointed but JB was right, you did run a marathon
So to cheer you up, I wrote a lame ass haiku made up of jayz/kanye lyrics or my bastardization of them
prepare yourself to be moved to tears or confused
cock back,snap back bitch
sunglasses and advil
that run was mad real
and this wraps up my last 15 minutes of paid work time and only makes sense if you like angry girl running music…
I think you’re awesome : )
Good job Homie. This was just a training run for the next PR
Still a freaking awesome finish. From 8:17 to 7:17? You kicked it in gear. Next weekend is yours!
Congrats on finishing #25! 25!!!!!!
great work! i know that feeling of frustration when you don’t meet your goals, but you really do have it together, and I have no doubt you will get it next time!
Any day you can run a marathon is a damn good day. Phx was perfect for a long run, overcast sky’s, and a slight cool breeze, it could have been worst, and a lot more painful!
Good luck in hb ! Hopefully the weather work out there just the same! Doesn’t matter how you run, you posts are hilarious!
25 marathons … wow. Most people in this world won’t ever complete ONE marathon, and you’ve done 25?? Congratulations, girl. I hope one day to be able to do a full marathon, but I’m just not there yet.
I’m sorry you’re disappointed in your performance, but I just want to echo everyone and say you’ve run 25 marathons and therefore KICK ASS! I haven’t even worked up the guts to do one!
Plus, your outfit was totally cute, and let’s be real -that’s important. =)
i’m sorry that u didn’t get a PR, but like ur mom said it’s okay to be disappointed but don’t be too hard on urself. just go after it next time. u still ran the darn thing!!!
that garmin’s splits are totally wacko for that 4 mile span, there’s no way u were jumping between the paces THAT much in such a short span. it’s prolly safe to bet u were around 7:45ish for those two chunks…just go off of overall time average.
just see if there’s anything u can learn from the race and take that forward to next time…u’ll get under 3:20 here soon!
you didn’t fail – you still rock to all of us. I still love you! Remember everything is a learning experience. 3:23 is still amazing. Don’t be too hard on yourself. you are a beautiful child of God!
hey, there will always be another race! you did what you could & i am happy for you for getting out there and JUST DOING IT! you are such a motivation to every one of us runners out there who haven’t even ran ONE marathon yet!!! you are still the best
I think it’s important to be reminded ( bc I have to remind myself often) that there are many people who are handicapped or disabled and wish they could run at all! You should be very proud of your accomplishment! You are a role model! God bless and you will hit your PR in no time!
#26 will be your lucky one
Thats my thought! #26 of 26.2
I had the same thought!!! You want #26 to be epic too, right??? I’m so excited for to have a fun race next week! And at least you’ll have gotten some dang cute pics from today… try to glitch up that, mr garmin!
I was wondering what was up when the leaderboard didn’t reach the 10K til after 8:30. I’d like to say a late start is a peeve of mine too, but in the big races I’m usually in such a medium-slow corral it doesn’t matter, haha.
Awesome job, agree 100% Prosecco is the ‘cure all’.
Congrats on the race even though you didn’t make your goal – more motivation for next time! Did you run with someone else’s bib or something? You’ve never blacked it out before. Not trying to call you out, just wondering …
You did great, but I know we all beat ourselves up when we feel like the end result could have been different. How many marathons have you run, holy cow! Seriously…
Awesome job! You will have a better race when you least expect it. You are FAST!
Love the BIC bands too…or anything like it. Nothing holds my hair back like those. They are my fave!
Congrats SR! Way to knock out another great race! And u looked so cute doing it!
I ran the half today and stuck around hoping for a celebrity sighting of you finishing. My sister-in-law and I both cheered for you as you headed into the finish, you looked awesome if that helps! Not meeting your goals does suck though so I know what you mean. Have another glass of Prosecco to drown your sorrows and then let it go, because you’re amazing and will get that PR next time
Awesome job today! It’s still a rockstar time, even if you didn’t quite meet your goal. I just wanted to comment on the first picture of your gear all laid out. One of my favorite running buddies and I have been doing that since our first marathon (LA circa 1995)! It’s fun to see how our running “stuff” has changed over the years! Good luck in your next race!
Don’t be sad! Everyone has an off day/race. And the Garmin dying I’m sure def was a huge part of it! You finished! Go you!
Don’t worry – when my doubles partner and I lost the state title once, I threw my medal away. Super mature.
I’d die for a 3:23. Teach me your ways. I mean, I eat picky bars and wear Bic Bands — what else do I need to do?!?
You’re a freakin’ machine! Sounds like a GREAT race time to me–esp since you freaking ran a marathon today and all I did was sit on my butt (and lie down and napped). Awesome.
Seriously love that top!
I’m sorry you didn’t meet your goal. I would be angry, too. Feel better.
stop whining lady – you have gazillion races to run in a future- I am pretty sure you will get your sub 3:20 very soon!
You did awesome – I know that me telling you that I would die for running 3:23 doesn’t make you feel any better, but you can just think you’re so much better than so many people, hehe;-)
I understand you must be a tad disappointed – but you have 25 marathons!!! i would love to be able to run x 1!! running is so much like life- sometimes everything goes smoothly & flows – then its the total opposite. I’m training for my 1st half & woke up with this morning with a knee injury. i’ve been running 45k a week for a few months- & stretching, icing etc. taking it slowly ….. so its a bit annoying…. but stuff happens. Good luck with your next one- you’re amazing!!
Don’t be so hard on yourself!!
26.2 x 25 does not equal a failure.
word!
I’m sorry you didn’t make your goal! Jay-mo is right tho… you finished a marathon… and your time is incredibly impressive to me!! Miss Speedy!!
I’m sure you’ll make your goal next time! 
Aw, I’m sorry you didn’t hit your time goal. Between a thoughtful husband and some good bubbly, I hope you are feeling better!
Awesome time! Sorry you didn’t make your goal, but prosecco does make everything better!
Nice job!! You’ll get it next time!
I doubt this makes you feel better, but everyone I know who ran today seemed to have a crappy day (myself included, though at least I only ran crappy for 13.1 miles). The half started 10 min late too. I’m chalking the bad performances up to the bizarre temperature swings in the 24 hours prior to the race. Still – great job in my book! Might I recommend the Tucson Marathon in Dec. for your PR… fast, largely downhill course, and scenic.
SR,
Sorry you were bummed about the results of your race. I think I would have been bummed as well. But you know, the not-so-good ones make the good ones even better! Truly! And be grateful your body even allows you to run so much… my knees are really bad so I can only run halves. I’ve been told that if I run a full it could be my last race.
God gave you a body that can really run it! Be grateful and be excited that your next one will be better! Way to go!! I run marathons vicariously through you. 
Thanks for allowing me to do that!
Heh, it was just a training run for the next one, when you WILL go under 3:20.
Whenever I have a bad race I make up seven million excuses and I still feel lame.
There’s always next time. You looked fabulous & that’s what really matters, right?
Keep your chin up.
There’s just something utterly frustrating about a Garmin that dies mid-run. It’s happened to me once so far, and I was just all sorts of frazzled and bleh after that. Hopefully you can PR at the next one you’ve got lined up.
Wow, a 3:23 is ridiculous! You are soooo fast. I couldn’t even imagine ever running a marathon, much less 25. Of course, all I did was sit on my lazy butt all day long
Come down to Tucson sometime! The mountains are stunning.
I met you in your corral this morning. May I say that I always thought you were pretty on your blog, but in person you are even more beautiful! Sorry if that sounds a bit stalker-ish! I missed my goal time by about 4 minutes today so I have the grumpies a little bit.
. Nice to meet you.
Totally second that SR is even prettier in person
nice to meet you too beth!
I always say anytime I can start a race and finish it before the sweeper is a good race. That could be what us slow people tell ourselves though to make us feel better.
Sorry you didn’t get your goal but there is always the next one.
I saw ya at mile 24 and tried to give ya some extra cow bell, sorry it didn’t help. You were a celebrity among the group, we all blog stalk ya.
I would kill for a marathon time that fast! You know what they say – one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.
Awww…don’t you love it when our boys know to make the coffee stops.
Always makes me smile…
Congrats on a GREAT run!
You’re awesome SR!!!! It’s the bad races that make us stronger. Also, I like to remind myself that what is your idea of a “bad” race is someone else’s “PR.” It helps put things into perspective.At the same time though, sometimes I think running a “faster” time makes us more critical when we don’t live up to our expectations. I was super pissed at myself this weekend when I ran 1:45 half marathon then saw a bunch of people super happy to finish and run it under 2 hours. I always remind myself those are the people to admire because they spend so much more time out there. I hardly even trained but knew I could of done better.
Stop beating yourself up SR! You are an inspiration to each of us
Keep up the hard work and who knows, you may just hit your goal in Carlsbad!
If you cross the finish line then there is no such thing as a fail. Maybe a little dissappointment but there will always be another race. You ran 26.2 miles. Just be proud and happy that you can wake up everyday and do that! You’ll get your PR.
You still did a great job even though you didn’t PR; but I totally understand being pissed for not meeting a goal. I was reading the RNRAZ FB pg tonight and a guy said that the sensor mat for the 16 mile marker was actually at about 16.2, so if you had a slow pace from 10-16, and faster from 16-20, that’s why. So you prob weren’t as schizo as you think
Everyone has good and bad running days. Unfortunately, it’s luck of the draw as to whether a good one will be on race day….I’ll still read your blog, though, cause you still rock to me!
Hang in there babe. That’s what’s I’m doing…am moping over my funked out run this past weekend. And I even walked part of a 10km! Can I join the club?
I’m sorry to hear that you didn’t PR, but hey, you still ran 26 miles today! Love the pink shoelaces
you’ll never fail me friend. Thats still fast to me, schitzo and all!
love ya!
Are you ready for a dose of super pacer on Sunday?
Sorry you didn’t meet your personal goal, but it’ll make that much more determined in your next one. Still a well run race. And hey, your arms look good like maybe that weight lifting is already working. So that’s a bonus. Plus so awesome of your hubby to be so supportive. That’s a good guy right there.
It sounds like you started off on the wrong foot since it was delayed for 30 minutes. I hate that, too. When the race starts late, I seem to waste so much energy complaining and standing around before that and my times are horrible.
You’ve got a new PR on your next race! Use this experience as your motivation.
You may be disappointed in the outcome of this particular race, but you ran it! And thats amazing in itself!
Arg. I’m running my first RnR In Feb. and I’m already annoyed by what may go wrong and delayed start times. Wompwomp
I know that you are disappointed however to me you did so awesome. I cant even run one mile. But I do understand being disappointed with something you had thought you could do better than you did.
Keep up the good work and inspiring all of us wanna-be runners.
I hate it when races start late. The Hot Chocolate 15k in DC started over an hour late. I ended up not being able to race because I had to catch a train and pushing it back an hour screwed me. I was pissed! The race was $75!
It sucks that you didn’t PR, but your time was still awesome! Congratulations!
Sorry you didn’t PR, but like JJ said … you did just run a marathon. That is way more than most people did! Be proud of what you did accomplish … not what you didn’t. Good luck with your next race. http://www.dashingdiva.net
Well you still rock my socks!!!!!
the hubby is right. you ran a marathon, that’s more than most people do.
If it makes you feel any better…you look really skinny in your pre run picture
First Tebow, now SR?! This is freaking me out! But seriously, congratulations on your still superhuman time. This is only going to give you that extra push you need to blast that sub 3:20 goal!
Sorry you were bummed with your time, I think it’s amazing! There’s always the next race, right?!
I’ve heard such awful stuff about Rock N Roll marathons… makes me never want to run one…
Hi SR! Just wanted to say that I was so excited to read that you were running the PF Chang Marathon because I was running it too and this was my first marathon! I saw you on the 13-19 mile loop on Indian School Rd and you totally inspired me to go faster. I finished with a 4:29:38 time and before this the longest I had ever run was 13.1 miles. Love your blog!
congrats, that is awesome! your first marathon is always a big experience so savor it!
I’m sorry you didn’t have the race you wanted, but you still rocked it!
I actually PR’d by 14 minutes in the half and had negative splits, so I was super stoked.
Still a stellar race, but I’m sorry you didn’t make your “A” goal. Your next PR is in for sure!
What is the deal with RNR events of late….a 30 min delay?! Not cool. That had to throw your game off too.
Celebratory drinks make it all better!
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