Sunday morning I got up before the alarm went off. Little after 5:30am, ktula also struggled himself off the bed. I was so happy ktula accompanied me to the race. It was very sweet of him.

You’d think 2nd time around, the race would be easier. In some ways it is – I know now refill during race is really important (first time I trained myself to not take fluid nor use gel/electrolytes, I ended up having to grab a sip of water and that’s what I needed to finish the race). Also, finding someone with similar pace to run with will help you do better.

But this one was no picnic either. A 200ft climb to Prospect Point in little over 0.5 mile distance was tough but I anticipated it so it was all part of the game. Not able to find runners of similar pace turned out to be somewhat of a problem. After the halfway point, runners started passing me left and right. So much so I started doubting myself. “Am I doing so bad this time? What happened?” Those weren’t the most encouraging thought to keep you going.

The toughest part was the last 3 miles. Unfamiliar with the course, the last distance seemed to go on forever. Finally, I spotted the finish line ahead. To my surprise, the timer at the Finishing Line showed it was still under 2 hours. A new found energy came out of nowhere, I sprinted the last part and completed the race in net time 1:56:08.

Alright I did it. The best part was ktula was there to congratulate me with a big long hug. We left shortly after the race. Now on to ktula’s eating marathon!

4 months ago, the thought of running a half marathon didn’t even exist in my head. Marathon was something I didn’t believe I can do, nor did I want to. I was content with my weekly run around Green Lake. At age 35, 5.8 miles in 50 minutes was in my opinion, as good as it gets. Days before running my first 5K race, I half jokingly and half seriously said to my friend Jaime I think I have peaked my running career, “It’s downhill from here.”

Jaime disagreed immediately. He told me female runners tend to excel at older ages. The next day, he sent me a New York Times article to back up his statement. I was very encouraged by this.

My first 5K race went well. I enjoyed it so much I started tempering with the idea to take running more seriously. The next big race event was Amica Insurance Seattle Marathon, which was just over 3 months away. Would I be ready for it? My colleague Lisa is an experienced runner who has done 4 half marathons. I went to her for advice.

“You can do it!” Lisa said it with so much certainty I wasn’t sure she was talking about me. She saw the disbelief look on my face, so repeated again with even more confidence in her tone “You are going to do great!”

There, she talked me into believing myself. Throughout my training, I went to her whenever I had questions or doubts on my techniques. She was always there, eagerly providing her runner’s wisdom.

The 12-week online training program was surprisingly easy to stick with. All I needed to do was commit to the schedule. I was making progress slowly but surely.

Race day weather condition was ideal in the low 50s with occasional drizzle. One thing I learned from my 5K race was to maintain a steady pace. The first half of the race went well, but the run became tougher as I approached the “big hill” near the end of Lake Washington Blvd. The Galer St. climb to Madison St. was steep but manageable. However, once I reached Madison St., it was just the beginning of another hill. Finally a short break as I turned right and got off Madison, but then another hill, and another….

Most hills seemed to be concentrated during the 2nd portion of the course. For the most part my mind was drawing a blank and my feet were moving forward mechanically. Somehow I kept up with a group of runners I was running with throughout good chunk of the race.

The hardest part was the last few miles. As I struggled with the Lakeview Blvd. slope going uphill, I started to experience side stitch. I gathered my thought and returned my focus on rhythmic breathing. Eventually the pain went away. But exhaustion remained, I was getting thirsty too. I skipped all the water stations but now I needed some fluid real bad. I grabbed a sip of water at the next water station. It was much needed for that one last hill and to the finish line.

What a feeling to have finished the run and be able to run with thousands of runners, knowing all of us have worked hard for the same goal of finishing the race. It was truly a humbling experience. I like what John Stanton wrote for the Vancouver Marathon website: “…Training is not a test but rather a magical journey that will empower you mentally, physically and provide a, I can do it, attitude.” It was exactly the case for me. And along the way, I had help and supports from friends. I’m truly blessed.

Today I woke up to a rainy morning. Watching rain coming down rather heavily, I started to ponder if I should move today’s run indoor. But how I hate running on treadmill. It’s uninspiring and absolutely takes the fun out of running.

Plus today I would be challenging myself to a 1 hour and 35 minutes run. I couldn’t see myself finishing the entire run on a treadmill. I went online to look for answer to my dilemma. On Active.com’s forums, I found a discussion concerning running in the rain. It seemed that rainy day runs are good way to prepare runners for running conditions they can not predict in the day of actual run event. What a relief. I started looking forward to my rainy day run.

With this rain, Greenlake had much less people. The rain stopped during my second lap. What’s left was the overcast and windy weather which was perfect for a long run. I completed 11.2 miles in 1 hour and 35 minutes.

Happy day! I’ll have a bit of wine tonight to celebrate my yet another new record.

For once, I was not stressed over scheduling. The loose plan was to get to the island and to ride our bicycles. We did the typical Orcas Island tourist activities a little over 2 years ago. This time I didn’t have anything particular in mind, other than to enjoy the sunny relaxing island lifestyle I so vividly remembered from our last visit on the island.

We took Friday off, started the morning slow and easy. After lunch, we loaded up the car and headed north to Anacortes. We anticipated long wait at the ferry terminal. But once we passed the pay booth, we were quickly docked into the ferry.

I booked a little cottage with North Shore Cottages. Situated at the northern tip of the island, the cottage was right off the Puget Sound water. It is a little over a mile from Eastsound where most restaurants and shops are located. It’s an ideal location to get the best of both natural and the convenience of civilization.

We found North Shore Cottages hidden in the forest. Upon arrival, friendly innkeeper Elizabeth greeted us with warm welcome. She apologized for messing up the reservation. Instead of the ocean view studio Eagles Nest as we originally requested, we were placed in the nautical-theme one bedroom Orcas Watch.

We didn’t mind the switch. A bigger cottage is usually a good thing. We also found a bottle of red wine, complementary of the innkeeper and her husband, for the mess up.

After situated in the cottage, we took Mango for a walk around. His excitement was impossible to go unnoticed. Grassy trails, brand new land to explore, and constantly running into deer and other wild animals, this place is like a Disneyland for Mango. All the time he wanted to go out and play. He drank very little water, ate almost nothing, and didn’t go potty as he supposedly should.

I heard some good things about Christina’s Food & Wine. Regardless of its pricey menu, I suggested giving it a try. Our order was forgotten and we didn’t get served until it’s almost the restaurant’s closing time. The quality of cooking was inconsistent. We had clams and mussels for appetizer. We were surprised by how salty some of the mussels were. My main course was seafood stew. It was decent but portion was small. $30 for a junior size stew, which did not worth writing home about, was in my opinion highway robbery.

The next day was the big day; we planned on cycling with Mango. We purchased a dog bicycle trailer on cragslist so Mango can tag alone our bicycle adventures. While assembling the carrier the night before, ktula discovered a crucial secure pin for the carrier roof was missing. The next day morning, we headed back to Eastsound for breakfast, then stopped by a bicycle shop. The friendly shop owner found a perfect piece from a box full of bicycle parts and solved our problem.

Initially we wanted to go cycling at Lopez Island. But it would require serious coordination and efforts to transport bikes and carrier to the terminal, catch the ferry, and make sure we return to the terminal on time to catch the ferry back. So we decided to just ride around Orcas Island. Our first stop was the island’s off-leash park. Mango was happy and tired after some chasing and ball fetching.

We rode to Eastsound, attempted to ride along the main street toward east. Then decided to head back when the traffic started to get heavy. We made a stop at the north shore beach.

We returned to the cottage and loaded up the bikes and carrier, with the intention of driving around to find a bike-friendly road. Since we had not been to Deer Harbor before, we decided to check it out. Somehow we talked ourselves into thinking there’s a fish market of some sort at Deer Harbor, where we could buy fresh seafood such as spot shrimps and Dungeness crabs. Walking around the marina, we saw lots of boats and piles of empty crab pots. But no sign of any fish market or fresh catch for sale.

Then ktula had another idea: he wanted to take Mango to a farm. Once in A Blue Moon Farm on Eastman Rd sounded like a fun place to be. The farmland was beautifully landscaped. We were welcomed by flower garden and fruit trees. Curious hens and roosters were checking us out from a safe distance. The farm lady was very friendly. She welcomed us to walk around the farm and told us to look for one of his horses also named Mango. We bought some organic eggs and peaches from her before bidding goodbye.

It certainly was a long and productive day. We went back and crashed for the rest of the afternoon. For dinner, we decided to revisit New Leaf Café. Last time when we stayed at Outlook Inn, we stumbled into this place and were blown away by the food and services. This time we had the same superb dinning experience. Shellfish pot was tender and flavorful; crab cakes were densely packed in Dungeness crabs meat; fried calamari was juicy and the portion was generous…. At the end we finished up with a delicious chocolate mousse with raspberry and Grand Marnier crème brulee. It just wouldn’t seem right had we skipped the dessert.

Last morning on the island, I ran 5 miles from North Shore to Eastsound via North Beach Rd, continued on the hilly Crescent Beach Dr then looped back from Terrells Beach Rd. Running alongside of swamp, forests, and large hay fields were definitely different from my typical pedestrians-dodging routine.

Cottage in the woods, wildness within reach, sun-kissed sky, charming towns and friendly folks, it was another wonderful time spent on Orcas Island. We’ll miss those time-is-no-importance, laid-back 3 days.

After completing my first race at Seafair Torchlight Run, I become more serious about running. I started following a training program. The training program keeps things simple so I can more or less stick to it. As of this past weekend, I was 3 weeks into the program, and completed my first 3-laps run around Greenlake (8.4 miles).

That was freaking awesome. It took years before I started running 2 laps (5.6 miles) and just 3 weeks to run another lap. I’m so excited.

I completed my first race at this year’s Seafair Torchlight Run. I picked the 5K over 8K because I honestly didn’t know if I would be able to finish the course. To my fear, the day of race was hot and humid. It was not an easy run but I finished it. Afterward, I ran all the way home at lower Queen Anne via Alaska Way.

It’s a big step for me. The race reminded me of the progress I’ve made over the years. 7 years ago, my friend Boon coached me and introduced me to running. I mentioned his name because to this day, he still reminds me how he “saved” my life. So it is official Boon, you are such a great friend and you don’t want me to forget about it.

I still remember clearly when we first started our training at Greenlake, I was out of breath after jogging the distance of 3 trash cans (400 feet?). From that, I slowly progress to today’s 5.6 miles in 50 minutes. The progress was slow but then again I wasn’t doing it with a particular agenda in mind.

Just before the race, I learned a very encouraging piece of information from a friend. According to a New York Times article, female runners do better as they get older. And guess what? the 3rd place female runner in the 5K race is a 49-year-old!

I’m starting to get excited about the possibility if I take running more seriously.