Decision #1: I have to pick one more marathon for the year (I haven't signed up yet for the Humboldt Redwoods Marathon on 10/17, but am planning on it). I am between the Silicon Valley Marathon on 10/31 or the Eye-Q Two Cities Marathon on 11/7.
Silicon Valley pros:
- Closer to home (about a 1 hour drive); I'd probably end up not getting a hotel room so would have to drive down and back Saturday and then again Sunday (total 4 hours drive time -- OR get a hotel and not as huge a "pro" over Two-Cities).
- With an earlier date I'll have an extra week to recover before diving into a training program for the Texas Marathon (I am hoping to race this one and gun for a PR).
Silicon Valley cons:
- The course is an out-and-back.
- The race gets lackluster reviews.
Eye-Q Two Cities pros:
- The race got awesome reviews.
- I could make a mini vacay out of it and drive over to the Sequoia National Park the day after the race. Of course, this ups the expense of another hotel night -- but does make the long drives more palatable if I'm seeing something interesting while out there.
Eye-Q Two Cities cons:
- Farther from home, I'll have to get a hotel room and drive a total of 7 hours to get there and back.
- One week further out so cuts an extra week out of my recovery/training period for the Texas Marathon (7 weeks of training vs. 8 weeks).
What does everyone think?
In the end, I'll be honest and say the biggest weighing factor is the training span before Texas. Do you think one extra week will make that much of a difference? I am not planning on racing Silicon Valley or Two-Cities. It will be more of long training run so hopefully won't beat me up too much. There may even be some benefit to running a marathon closer to Texas as a long training run. Hmm...
Cliff and RG, are you two happy now? (Oldie but a goodie Mario 'stache shot)
Decision #2: Should I sign up for the Goofy Challenge again in 2011 or "just" do the marathon?
This one breaks my heart a little. So when I first did Goofy in 2008 it seemed like a huge and daunting challenge. A half and then a full on consecutive days?! Gah! I trained specifically for the races doing back-to-back long runs. By far my hardest training cycle ever (mentally, at least). I got the challenge done and was so proud. I dare say much prouder than over this double marathon stunt I just pulled.
I did Goofy again 2010 and banged it out with no specific training. I even ran faster than I did in 2008 (somewhat weather related, but still...). While I still thought the challenge represents something special, it wasn't quite so awe-inspiring or satisfying as it had been in 2008.
I was planning on doing Goofy again in 2011. But while I was running the double I sort of had a, "What's the point?" moment. I know I can do it. I now know I can do a lot more than that. And (this is the real kicker) since I am planning on racing a marathon hard the week before (that pesky Texas Marathon again) I'm not sure it is wise to attempt it again in 2011.
For one, I don't know if my body can handle a hard marathon and then Goofy just one week later. I banged out CIM and Honolulu one week apart last year, but Honolulu was hard. I'm not sure I could have done both a half and full that week without seriously hurting myself. Secondly, I could get on board with the idea of trying to PR Goofy to make it a slightly different challenge than just finishing. However, with Texas the week before that is out of the question.
Also, Disney 2011 will hopefully be my 26th marathon (the whole reason I'm doing this odd-ball 15 marathon stretch) and falls exactly on the 6th anniversary of my first marathon (Disney 2005). I don't want to risk not being able to start or finish by doing the half the day before and I sort of want to enjoy the experience.
Also, Disney 2011 will hopefully be my 26th marathon (the whole reason I'm doing this odd-ball 15 marathon stretch) and falls exactly on the 6th anniversary of my first marathon (Disney 2005). I don't want to risk not being able to start or finish by doing the half the day before and I sort of want to enjoy the experience.
So what makes me want to do Goofy in 2011? Three things: 1) I LOVE Disney races. They are near and dear to my heart. Doing Goofy gives me 13.1 more miles of Disney race to soak in. 2) If I'm flying across the country and spending all that $, mine as well get a two-for. 3) Those sneaky Disney bastards are changing the medals again in 2011. At first I thought it was just a new Mickey medal, but now I hear all three are changing.
Thoughts on this?
I am heavily leaning towards one option in one dilemma, but am totally open to ideas on the other. I won't share what I'm thinking just yet because I'm curious what the voice of reason (yours) will say.
13 comments:
katie ran fresno last year and she LOVED it... you should ask her about it. the other one i have heard is boring snoring.
goofy is tough, will you be sad you are there and NOT running goofy? i mean you are going ALL the way there :)
Regarding #1, one week of training setback will probably make zero difference at your level of fitness. You just need to decide whether you're running a marathon to run a marathon, or doing it for fun. Personally, I'd go for Eye-Q, if funds weren't a problem. Then again, I lived in Fresno for a year as a kid, so I'm partial.
Regarding #2, if you're going to regret not doing Goofy, you might as well go for it.
Regarding Mario, I must kiss that nose! You should bring him with you when you come to do the Texas Marathon, so I can cover him in smooches.
SVM is super boring. But if you do happen to choose it, you are more than welcome to crash at my place the night before. I'm prob 20 min from race start.
And I agree with the others... just do Goofy. You'll regret it if you don't. Honestly, knowing what I know now, I would only do Goofy, doing just the half or just the full just seems silly.
I've heard Silicon Valley is not very fun at all, but the convience factor is definitely a plus. However, I would opt for the more scenic race :)
On the Goofy front I would actually be tempted to only run the full in your case. I think it seems sort of a celebration of the full and I mean we all know you're a machine that can crank out the Goofy Challenge and run back to back marathons :) so maybe it might be nice to just enjoy the marathon on that trip?
Eye Q and the full-Goofy.
Good grief - many folks, once they are in shape, just run a marathon every week and let it go in between!
Mario! Yay! (What would Mario do? - oh wait - we probably don't want him to weigh in on this!)
I'm really not the one to ask about marathons (I recently started exercising and was extatic that I jogged 5 minutes on a treadmill without taking a break), but I DO love that Mario shot! Can I boop that nose?
Not sure about recommending but I was wondering about the goofy challenge myself. Although, at this point I have to get over my first marathon in October.
I have a feeling I'll have to visit your blog often for inspiration.
Good luck what ever choice you make.
silicon valley sounds like a boring race. IF you have the money, do the two cities. you're supposed to get a hat and a female long sleeve tech shirt, w/ a V NECKLINE! come on, how many marathons will give you a long sleeve tech shirt w/ a v neckline? this is if you have the money to go of course.
why can't goofy just be an easy run if you're worried about getting an injury? see how you feel after the texas marathon, and if your legs don't feel so great, make it an easy run, and get the medals. worse comes to worse, go on ebay and buy the medals.
i like the mario pic... too bad it's not monday. =P
I say Eye-Q marathon since the course sounds better. And I probably wouldn't do the Goofy Challenge, but then again, I wouldn't attempt 12 marathons in a year...You are intense!
Decision 2...go for the BLING. Get the extra medal. Plus it will get a lot of comments... "you did what"??? And they shake their head and look at you like you're crazy.
Decision 1. For me, there is something about being close to home, knowing where everything is. Plus its cheaper without the hotel, gas, food, etc.
One week won't make a difference...besides, if you're not really "racing" and treating it more like a long run you don't really have to back off training all that much. reading the other comments...if there really is a women's long sleeve v-neck on the line, i say go for it!
to goofy or not to goofy...i think i would let the $$ lost be my judge. if it wasn't too much extra dough i'd go ahead and sign up for it. then i'd let my body direct me. since it's right after your PR attempt, you don't want to hold back the week before. so, run your little heart out and then in the days following make a decision about the goofy. hope that makes sense...
I can't comment on the marathons since I don't know anything about them but if the goal is do pretty interesting ones then I'd go for the one that's a little farther away but prettier.
As for GOOFY, you should do goofy and run the half with me, it'll be slow (even for me since I'm conserving energy for the full) and you'll have energy to spare for the full. It is daunting--at least for me but you are going all the way there right???
PS Excited to have you in Ptown for the marathon here--we will be in our house then and will actually have a real bed for you to sleep on and everything!
I would go all out and do eye q, PR in Texas and then goofy it up slowly :-) I have complete confidence in you!!!
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