an open letter to brightroom

Dearest Brightroom,

I have no doubt noticed, that it is that time of the year again. What time, you may ask? Why, the holidays, which bring the constant email reminders to my inbox that a Brightroom picture makes the perfect holiday gift for family, friends, enemies, etc...

But seriously, you don't think some of those reminders are overkill?

First off, my email server does not love the fact that I have to get the reminder emails for each event not once, but twice.

Second, in a good majority of the races you have emailed me about, you did not even get any pictures of me, since you seem to focus more on getting pictures of people at the front of the pack. Let's all think about this logically for a second-why would I purchase pictures from an event that you got none of me?

Third, those piccys are just way.too.expensive. I think I can find more creative things to do with my $$$.

So please, cease the constant emails. Both myself and my inbox would be everso appreciative.

Love, kisses and fluffy bunnies,
NYFlyGirl

(nope, I didn't really send this note that drips of sarcasm. but boy would I want to...)

can a girl have too many running skirts?

oh, damn you SkirtSports. is it not enough that I have spent way too much money over the last couple of weeks on both running and non-running stuff, and gave into the temptation of your end-of-October sale...but your new limited edition holiday GymGirl skirt is calling my name...telling me it will look soooo cute with my long-sleeve black Flyers shirt....

and on top of all that, I am sorta intrigued by the new determination skirt by atalanta....this skirt/capris combo doesn't look half-bad...at least I like this one better than SkirtSports' attempt at a cold-weather skirt (does help that the colors are a little more flattering)

I need skirt intervention. Or something.

insert witty post title here

yeah i know, i've become a once-a-week blogger. (and i obviously cant seem to think of any cute post titles either.) i guess part of the reason is that on a day-to-day basis, i don't have as much blogging material as i used to...or material that i want to mention publicly.

so yeah...since the marathon weekend, things have been sorta status quo. i'm glad to mention that my "do not slack off on running during the colder months" has gone well so far. the last 2 weeks have consisted of at least 30 miles each (a long run, a speed workout, and 3 shorter runs) and a spin class. I do have to admit that vanity is the main motivator at this time...I have a dress for the Flyers awards gala that I need to fit into-yeah Flyer readers, I know it's early but hey-when you see a great dress on sale in June that you know would be perfect the following February, you snatch it up!! Plus I am a bit nervous about the upcoming holiday season...being surrounded by goodies like cookies and chocolate and whatever else is at holiday parties...

And on that topic, thankfully it looks like I am going to be able to celebrate the holiday season this year, as work is not the living hell it was last year (what a difference getting a monster project out of my hair makes...) Hell I am taking tomorrow off from work-can't remember the last time I was able to take the Wednesday before Turkey Day off!! Will be heading home to NJ for the weekend-good news is my mom is cooking and she is the better cook :) bad news is my mom is cooking so more good stuff to eat (must...run....thursday morning...)

Racing? Probably only the Kleinerman 10K next month-only because it's a points race, and really not expecting much due to it most likely being crowded...honestly, I'd love to stay away from all December NYRR races, since they are packed with people trying to get in the last of their 9 marathon qualifiers (thank god I had mine in by June!!)

And on the more mysterious side-there is something going on that I really can't mention in detail-but I really wish I could because moral support would be appreciated :) It's something risky...I would have a lot to gain, but it could backfire...but the thought at this point is "what do I have to lose." Intrigued? I'm sure. (I bet I know what the obvious assumption is...and it's not that!!)

Happy Turkey Day to everyone!!

a belated marathon weekend re-crap

Yeah-I meant to get this up a lot earlier-it's just been quite the hectic week. So here goes!!

Thursday-made a guest appearance at the Flyers pasta party-we made another return to Sambuca, as it was great last year. But I really could not justify pigging out when I would not be running 26.2 miles...oh well, at least it was good to see and chat with everyone!! (pic is of me and runner26)

Friday-had the day off from work, so hit up the expo. Since I didn't have to cancel my entry, I wanted to get my goodie bag-which i was quite underwhelmed with, except for the shirt (though orange is not exactly my color!) And the expo was quite underwhelming too, compared to previous years. But I did manage to do some damage to my credit card-a new pair of sunglasses to replace the ones that broke, a travel-size Stick, a cold-weather Mizuno top, and a pair of capri tights and a jacket from Sugoi (all Sugoi stuff was on sale!) Yeah, may have gone overboard, but have my reasons. Oh, and saw blogger Brooklyn again working at the check-in line!

Saturday-I already gave my Trials recap in the previous post...

Sunday-once again, was working at the mile 18 PowerGel station. My plan was to get there for the 10 am shift so I could see the elites, but stay long enough to cheer on the crowds too. The weather was a little chilly, but I was still wearing running-type clothes-a skirt and long-sleeve Flyers top-and my bib. Just in case anyone needed me to run with them, I would be prepared. Unlike previous years where I had no clue how the race was going, this year I had my Treo with me and was following along. So I wasn't surprised to see Radcliffe and Wami way in front as they passed by mile 18. Soon enough, the elite men and the masses passed by. Lance Armstrong was quite UTR this year-I didn't even see him!! Crazy Bandana-head passed by, camera in hand (and got this picture of me cheering) on his way to another BQ. Also saw Jon and Danny, but missed Johnny (as he was not wearing Flyers gear.) But also missed Katie Holmes-oh well, I saw enough in the post-race coverage :-p Once again, it was a blast handing out gels and really having a front-row seat for this thing. And congrats to all the runners!

Later that night was the post-marathon party...where quite a few of us had quite a bit to drink...as the pictures show :)

From the stories I heard about the transportation hassles, the wave starts, the baggage nightmares, and the chip times not getting recorded for quite a bit of the orange start...I am glad I decided to sit this year out. And I think I am ready to gear up for next year. The key is going to be not slacking off this winter like I did last year (and hopefully dropping those stubborn 15-20 extra pounds!) Luckily, work isnt as hellish as it was last year, and the new cold-weather clothes will help...hopefully my teammates can help keep me motivated too!!

mens olympic trials

The terrific threesome that will be representing the US next year!
(taken via my cell phone at the awards ceremony)

*********************************************************

wow...this morning was truly an emotional rollercoaster. this sport saw its share of highs and lows....a horrible, horrible tragedy...to what is going to be a super-strong team in Beijing next year.

The Flyers were given the opportunity to work the aid stations at the OT Trials. Who cares that I had to get up before dawn (hey, I wasn't running a marathon the next day!)-when else do you have such a major event in your own backyard? I was assigned to the station just north of the finish line...so the runners would come by around miles 2, 11, 16 and 21...then we can try to see the finish!! I got there at 6:30 and helped set up...was still dark out, and boy was it chilly and windy. But the time went by fast, and before we knew it, the race had begun. And around 10 minutes in, we saw the lead vehicles, and then the runners!!! There was a surprise leader way in front (which we all thought would fade later,) but all the favorites were in the main pack. So cool to see these guys up close.

Since we had about 45 minutes to kill-a bunch of us got some coffee to warm us up, then we headed back to the station. And that was when we heard the news-that Ryan Shay had gone down around mile 5 1/2. All we knew was that he had been taken away in an ambulance-one of our teammates was hopeful that he'd be ok-mentioning that Salazar had a heart attack and is still alive today-but that news cast a dark shadow over our group for the time being. Man...words can't describe what was going through my head at the time...what was probably going through all our heads...

When we saw the runners for miles 11 and 16-the pack was a little bit more strung out. (Not surprisingly-the early leader had dropped back quite a bit.) Was so cool cheering for the runners, seeing a lot of them up close...Hall, Ritz, Meb, Abdi, Sell...and a couple other dark horses that I was rooting for too...Matt Downin (a former Bergen County-ite, and winner of many NYRR races) and Josh Cox (of "The Bachelorette" fame!)

By mile 21-we all knew who had the race. Ryan Hall was absolutely flying, and had a sizeable lead at that point. Man...he was making it look so. damn. easy. Ritz was in second and he took a cup of water from the table I was at :) As soon as the sweeper bike came by, a bunch of us dashed to the finish, to hopefully catch a glimpse of the winner breaking the tape...but too late!! But we heard the news-that the top 3 were Hall/Ritz/Sell...and Hall had won in 2:09!! Are you kidding me...less than a minute off his London time, on a course as tough as this...unbelievable!! Ritz showed once again that he owned Central Park...and Sell ran a very smart race. I'm very excited to see how this unfolds next summer!! Another men's marathon medal for the US, perhaps?

And I'm very excited to see a great women's race tomorrow as well...I'll be at my usual vantage point, volunteering at mile 18. I'm hoping that Jelena 3-peats (and wins the WMM as well!) but I'm hoping Paula has a great race too.

And best of luck to everyone else running tomorrow!

(and my thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Ryan Shay.)