RoadID Winner!!!

The RoadID provides various forms of ID to allow a person to decide where they want to wear their vital Identification. They encourage active people who participate in outdoor activities to wear ID and not take the chance of being unidentified in the event of an accident. It is far better to wear ID and never need it than to need ID and not have it.  So true, so true.

This really is such a great giveaway! Having mine has made me feel safer already! So...Random.org picked us a winner. Drumroll please...

S Club Mama

Shoot me an email and I'll get you all squared away with your new, personalized RoadID!  Congratulations!

And you all still have a chance to enter the Holiday Giveaway on RoadID's website for lots of amazing prizes!!!  Their deadline is 12/31/10 - you have a few more days for over $10,000 in prizes!

And don't worry my friends...I've got another super awesome giveaway to help start your new year off right... I'll keep you in suspense a few more days... : )

I'm A Little Competitive

My husband often reminds me to 'take it down a notch...'  We love games in our house.  Board games, Card games, dominoes, video games.  And even though I love my kids sooooo much, I'm not about to let them win.  Sorry.  I physically can't let them.  And they know it.  If they beat me in a game they are jumping up and down and through the roof.  They know I don't hold back.  I figure I'm doing them a favor.  No one is just gonna let them win later in life.  No one is gonna say, 'you failed that test horribly but you get an A anyways.'  Who better to teach them these hard life lessons than their mom...

For Christmas half of the gifts everyone received were games.  The big hit?  

Micheal Jackson's Wii...

And who do you think almost all the high scores belong to?

Yes that would be me...  In your face kiddos.  Not about to let a 7 year old better me on Thriller...or Remember the Time...or Billie Jean.  Seriously, so fun - makes me realize more and more that I missed my calling as a back-up dancer...  : )

I'm giving the kids a few days to pull their act together and practice..and then...rematch.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday with their families, we still have one more week with the kids home.  We're having way too much fun - if you're up for a little dance off, come on over for a battle.

I've been a little out of the blog loop for the last week so I decided to extend the RoadID Giveaway through today!  So last chance to put in your entries to design and receive your own RoadID for free!  I'll pick a winner tonight...

The Four Food Groups

I was so good at Halloween.  Even better over Thanksgiving - I lost 2 pounds during that crazy weekend!  And now the week of Christmas.  Buddy the elf has me converted to the four food groups...although my four are of a different holiday variety:  cookies, gingerbread, chocolate and Dr. Pepper.  Literally, I'm not exaggerating.  I weighed in last night and I'm up two pounds...  Oh well, what are you gonna do...  I'm even putting off my long run til Monday!  It'll all come back together I'm sure.

I'll be back to my regular four food groups on Monday.  Those would be protein, fruits, veggies and Dr. Pepper.  3 out of 4, that's not bad... : )

How are you all doing with the holiday food traps? 

Are you staying strong, or are you a bit like me and just enjoying the season...even if it includes a few extra hundred calories every day....EEEKKK! 

What's your holiday treat that you just can't say no to?

RoadID Giveaway!!!!

Do you ever worry when you're out on a run?  What if something random happens?  What if those goofy teenagers actually run me off the road this time?  What if that mountain lion finally nabs me on the trail and someone finds me? What if I win the race, but ran so hard I pass out and now they don't know the name to engrave on the huge trophy? ;) 
The Road ID will solve all those dilemmas and then some.  I actually feel safer just having it on.  I really can't tell you how times my mom has said, 'What if something happens to you while you're out running for hours?'  Now she can rest a little easier..

So guess what?  You have a chance to win your very own!  You can customize yours with whatever information you choose and there's even a line to put your own mantra. 

Rules of the game/Ways to enter:


Be a follower of me, Racing Dawn

Like Road ID on Facebook

Follow @RoadID on Twitter

Enter the Road ID Holiday giveaway

Extra entry for every $5 donated to charity

Tell me what model/color of Road ID you would choose

Tell me a close encounter or time when your had a near miss out on the road, running or cycling.
 
There you have it!  Lots of ways to get those entries in!  Think of it as winning a Christmas gift for yourself!
 
I'll choose a winner on  Sunday, December 26th at 11:59. 

Merry Christmas!!!

My Awesome iPhone Photography Skills...

Remember this picture I took from the race? 

Of course you do.  It's gorgeous, right?  Who wouldn't want their marathon start to look like that?

Well I loved it so much that I entered in a little competition on Facebook. 

You know the drill...the picture with the most 'likes' wins! 

So just for fun...if you wouldn't mind...click on over and my picture is a couple drags down.  You'll see it.

Thank you!  I'll let you know if, I mean when, I win!!!  : )

Ryders Eyewear, GU and RoadID Product Reviews!

Days before I left for Tuscon I received an awesome package in the mail.  The product I was looking forward to trying out the most were these...

I received a pair of Ryder's Eyewear!  I wore them the entire race and didn't even know it.  Meaning they're lighter than a feather.  When I've worn shades in the past I've had to keep wiping the bridge over my nose and readjusting positions.  I normally don't even wear shades during a race because they almost always end up on the top of my head. Without sounding all gushy, I really do love my Ryders shades.  They will now be a staple on sunny race days!

I borrowed a proof to show I actually wore them during the race!  You're not allowed to critique my race form...My quads were already weighted down with kettle balls, so whatever that my arms are crossing my body and it looks more like I'm getting my speedwalking on rather than running.

I also recieved quite the stash of GU products.  I choose to take the Chomps and Recovery drink with me for race day.  The Chomps were great.  I used cranberry apple during the race and they went down like gummy bears, meaning: extremely easy.  Unfortunately the recovery drink was left at the hotel by mistake so chocolate milk was my recovery drink on race day.  I will have many opportunities to try it out again, I love recovery drinks - they make the biggest difference.

I also just received another great product. It's called a Road ID - perhaps you've heard of it. If you haven't, go to their website and check it out.  I can't tell you how many times between my mom and husband they've said, 'What if something happened to you out on that long run?'  Now they have a little piece of mind. : )

It was easy to order.  I ordered the Wrist ID Elite sportband made out of rubberized band and wore that on race day too.  I was actually worried it would bother me while I ran but didn't even notice it.  Perfect.

This is my RoadID vacationing in Tuscon... : )  The good folks at RoadID even gave out a coupon number for all my friends:                  

ThanksDawn884579 

This will get you $1 off your next purchase!  Good thru 1/4/11!

So thanks to Scott at Outside PR!!!  I love all my fun new products!  And all these reviews are my true opinion...of course. 

Any products that you can't live without? 

What saves you on race day?

Marathon #7 - Check

I know, beautiful, right?  It was a gorgeous morning.  I woke feeling great.  We had to be at the shuttle extremely early - too early.  We were shuttled up the course to the start at 5 a.m.  The race didn't start til 7:30...so we were lucky enough to sit on the bus til the gun went off if we wanted.  It was a chilly morning so I sat on the bus, half asleep til 7:15!  By the time I walked out my view was this sunrise...

I honestly felt great.  I felt well rested.  I thought this downhill course was going to be it.  My PR.  My sub-4.  As I've been looking at my Garmin stats it's all as plain as day where I went wrong.  Same ol' story.  Too fast, too soon.  I knew the course was a serious downhill in the first few miles but went went for it anyways.  Ran 8:00's and 8:30's through the first 6 miles, still at 9:00's at the halfway point.  At mile 19 I believe a cement truck pulled along side me and poured a gallon of cement in each of my quads.  Around 22 the heat started to get to me as well.  I had couple of starry moments but was aware enough to down some chomps, water and XOOD. 

Tuscon actually reminds me of Utah during the summer.  There were mountain ranges all around.  The course was scenic.  And it seemed that there was a water station every mile for the last 8 miles, which I was so thankful for.

Did you know Santa can run a 3:30 marathon?  Pretty good with that belly and suit, huh?

My official time was 4:30.  Yes, I was disappointed.  But I really did enjoy the race.  Other than the early hills killing my quads I felt so great.  I felt way better than last month's race.  I loved the warm weather even though that slowed me down at the end.  I finished the race with enough salt on my face to fill a salt shaker.  Yuck.  How bout those Ryders sunglasses though? 

When we made our way back to our hotel I found that they actually had a cold water spring!  There was ten of us in there up to our waists shivering.  Next best thing to an ice bath.  Brrrrr.

So the best thing about this race?  Meeting this chica...

Of course I'm sure you all know Emz.  She is even more amazing in real life than on her blog...if that's possible.  And those abs...they're rocks.  I wish I knew photoshop so I could fix myself up to look half way decent standing next to her!  I can't even use the excuse that I just ran a marathon cause she just did too.  We had the opportunity to meet up the night before for dinner with her cute family.  We literally laughed all night.  And yes, she sported the belt buckle.  Love it.  We clicked and had so much fun and she has got me convinced to come back to Phoenix next month for January's race.  This one she swears is truely flat.  I have yet to do an honestly flat race.  It could be the key to a PR.  I'm in closed meetings this week going over details, map comparisons and grilling race informants to make final decisions.  But it's looking like I'll be returning south for my next race.  Better start cutting out those white carbs and adding in 1000 sit-ups a night so as to be better prepared before our next meet-up...  : )

A few more details to come.  For now...the post just wouldn't be complete with a pic of a cactus.  : )

Cement Cinderblocks

Hmmm.  It wasn't a PR but I'll take it.  Just got back into town tonight...  I need one more day to process. One more day to figure out what the heck happened... : )  I survived. 

And I've also decided to become a snowbird.  I will soon be wintering in Tuscon.  So beautiful.

Currently searching the classifieds for a cane.  I'm having a slight problem walking down stairs.  The cement cinder blocks I mentioned?  Those would be my quads.  Race recap to come.

50 Things Friday

You have time to read about fifty different things that are on my mind today, right?  I'll see if I can condense it a bit for you...

1.  The few weeks leading up to this race have been the most different than all the other races this far.  I've completed the least amount of mileage ever in the last 3 weeks.  Looking at my running log (you know, the one that I only update in my mind) I wouldn't dare call me a marathoner.  This week I had my awesome 6 miler.  Last week I ran 3 easy miles on Wednesday and snowshoed 7 miles on Saturday.  The week before that I ran a total of 15 miles.   That's not a lot of miles my friends... 

2 - 19.  Stuff to pack, go to the store, do laundry....yada yada yada...

20.  There's this little tiny fiber in my right hamstring that has been quietly whispering to me, "Dawn...I'm here...Don't do anything crazy...."  Oh you mean crazy like run a marathon?  I'm not stressing out over it, but I'm just being aware.

21 - 36.  Find someone to watch kids while away, arrange car rides for weekend activities for kids, write out schedules for said someone that is watching kids...blah blah blah.

37.  I received the coolest Ryders sunglasses in the mail yesterday!  Get ready for some rockin' pics from the race wearing them.  They came just in the nick of time!

38 - 47.  Pick up daughter from ballet, get teenager ready for camp-out, go to basketball game tonight, pick-up two other kids from friend's house, make dinner...stuff, things, more stuff.

48.  Remember all that carbo loading that I did for the past two races?  It hasn't happened this go around.  I have got to get my head back in the game mentally here.  I have been drinking a ton of water this week but no big bread binges to speak of.  I'll have to try harder tomorrow.  There will definitely be some fun sifting through the results of this race.

49.  I really am excited to go.  The race course is supposed to be amazing and I really could use some color in my face.  Besides going for a run for a few hours this weekend, I will be catching some rays by the pool. :)

50.  This is race seven this weekend.  Or in my mind right now, it is my third marathon in six weeks.  At least I know why I might be so tired lately.  Better tie up those laces and get to it...  See you all on the other side!  of the weekend, that is...

Three Things Thursday - with a tune thrown in...

1.  I'm so excited for Arizona this weekend!  It's going to be 80 degrees.  A little warm for marathoning but I'll take it.  Hopefully I'll finish before it hits 70.  That's the goal anyways...  So this week I've been lathering up my legs...

I've been using tanning lotion in hopes to not scare the native Arizonians with my paleness.  I haven't ran in shorts for a couple months now.  The summer color fades so fast...

2.  Had a great 6 miler last night.  Love it when I have an awesome run before a race.  Good mojo...

3.  Please tell me you've been watching 'The Sing-Off'!!!  If you haven't you are missing out, big time.  I'm not sure how I can ever watch American Idol again.  These guys are amazing.  Voices like buttah. And I'm wondering why they're not already on the radio.  Here's who going to win....  Enjoy.

Tag, I'm It!

So I got double tagged this week!  Two friends wanted to do a little get to know you quiz, so I'm sharing my answers here.  Hopefully I don't bore you to death with my answers!

The first set come from Kerri...

1. What are you most excited about for the coming new year? What resolutions will you make and do you think you'll stick to 'em?

I'm really excited to hit my 12 in 12 mark in May.  I'm so excited and can't wait for the big party!!!  You'll all be there, right?

I actually have several resolutions for the new year but here's a few:
Be more patient, mostly with my kids...
Keep a cleaner house - seems near impossible most days, but I have to try harder...
Be more in tune with those around me to know how to be a better wife, mom, daughter, friend, person to them...
Cross train more days of the week...
Run an ultra event

And heck ya I'll stick to those resolutions!


2. When you go into a coffee shop, what do you order? (not necessarily coffee)

If I stop at a coffee shop I order hot cocoa with peppermint and extra whip cream.  Hmmm.

3. What was the first blog you followed? Do you still? And what is your favorite blog to read?

The first blog I followed was my friend Lindsay!  She is amazing and talked me into blogging when I told her about my running goal this year.  She's on a blog hiatus at the moment but I know she'll rejoin us in blogland soon!  Favorite blog - that's not a fair question.  I love all you guys!!! 

But maybe something fun to know, besides running blogs, I stalk interior design blogs!  I can't get enough...  it's my second favorite past time.  One of my faves is urbannestblog.com and then I go down their sidebar of other design blogs.  So fun.

4. Do you speak/read any other languages?

No languages.  Took french in high school.  Je m'appelle Dawn.  That's about all I got. 

5. This spin off of FB: If you and your mom/dad ended up in jail together and you could only say 4 words, what would they be?

There's Plan B, right?

6. What was your favorite show growing up? Can you sing the theme song? (I don't think Fresh Prince should count on this one.... everyone can sing that theme song)

Loved Cosby Show, Family Ties, Growing Pains when I was young...loved 90210 and Melrose Place in college!  Oh and Days of Our Lives and General Hospital too.  Should I stop now?

7. What is your most memorable race moment?

I've had lots of memorable ones.  I always think back to my first one because I hated it so much and thought I'd never do it again.  My PR at Top of Utah was pretty amazing this year.  Napa Valley and Muir Woods Marathon are the most memorable courses. Tougher than crap. but absolutely beautiful in a way only angels can sing as you run through the trails.  Am I going a bit overboard?  No.  Words can not express the scenery that I was able to run through.  I feel so blessed for all the races I've been able to do this year. 

8. What's the coldest you've ever run in and what did you wear?

18 degrees.  I wore running pants with sweats over them.  Two long sleeve shirts with a fleece sweatshirt over it.  Scarf.  Beanie with my hair down.  Gloves.  Socks and Sneakers.  Got home and took a shower for a half hour just to get rid of the chill.

If you could live in any home on a television series, which one would it be?
 
How bout in a movie?  I would love Meg Ryan's apartment in 'You've Got Mail'.  But it wouldn't fit my family...

Really just about anything that Candice Olsen designed on HGTV would be fine with me.


What’s the habit you’re proudest of breaking?

I'm in a constant battle of trying to kick the soda habit.  I do so good and am so proud but it doesn't take much to get me back on the Dr. Pepper bottle.  Still working on it.  When I do kick it, that will be the proudest!

Okay, now onto my friend with the same name, Dawn...instantly loved this girl... : )

Where do you go for advice?

My husband.  He's the sane one in the house.  My mom is a close second!

What’s your favorite Web site?

It seems I spend a lot of time on marathonguide.com lately.  Always reading marathon reviews and checking calendars to see what races I want to do next.  And of course checking all my blog friends out there!

Name five songs to which you know all the lyrics.

Dang, only five... I listen to music all the time.  And when I find a song I love, it goes on repeat mode.  Let's see, how bout...

1. Empire State of Mind - Jay Z & Alicia Keys
2. Paul Revere - Beatie Boys
3. California Love - Tupac
4. Hypnotize - BIG
5. Ice, Ice Baby - Vanilla Ice, yeah I said it - you know you know every word too. : )

Really, just about all R&B songs, all rap songs (minus the swear words), most pop songs.  Go ahead, quiz me...  I can do all the dance moves from all the vidoes too.  What.

What do you bring to running? A lot of people ask why you love running, or what do you get from running, but I think it’s interesting to talk about what we each bring to the sport.

I think I bring positive energy.  I love running.  I love how it makes me feel.  And I want others to feel that way too.  So hopefully what I bring to the sport is more people that enjoy it and love it as much as I do.  It's such a healthy addiction that crosses into other aspects of your life in positive ways.  I want others to experience it too.   A little sarcasm and humor I'd like to think I add in my own special way.

Since I’ve had trouble sleeping lately, what do you do if you can’t sleep? Count sheep? Toss and Turn? Get up and do something?

I watch movies til I can't sleep.  Love 'On Demand'.  Love to watch movies that I've already watched a zillion times, then I don't feel bad dozing off before it's over. 

So there you have it.  A few little tidbits about me.  I hope it didn't bore you to tears...  I'm tagging some more of you...  Anne, MissZippy, Laurie and Alma.  Here's your questions!

1.  What's your favorite race and why?  What's your dream race?
2.  What's your favorite running tip?
3.  Which reality show is your guilty pleasure?
4.  What is your power song, the song that takes your running to another level?
5.  What is your secret to balance in your life? 
6.  What are you most looking forward to in the new year?

Have fun with it!!!

Training Tip Tuesday

I've been looking ahead to my race schedule in the coming months and I've once again had a hard time deciding.  In January I found a race here in Utah that peaked my interest.  The marathon is actually a SNOWSHOE marathon!  I thought how amazing.  I'm in.  I'm doing it. 

So with the decision made up in my mind last week I thought maybe I should try snowshoeing first.  Good idea, right?  My friend Julie said she'd go with me, so I went to the local ski shop and rented some gear.  We decided to do the same trail I ran back in October, you remember, the one with the mountain lion tracks.

The section of the trail we did is 7 miles round trip.  We thought we'd kick this out in about 2 1/2 hours.  I honestly went in thinking we'd hike up to the top and then be able to somewhat run down.  Hmmm.  I always have been known to be a little overly optimistic...

The trail was absolutely beautiful.  We felt like we were making pretty good time, but the switchbacks seemed never-ending.  On our way up we ran into a gentlemen that was on his way down the trail...smoking a cigar.  Nothing like being out in nature, exercising, breathing fresh air...oops, i mean inhaling a big ol' stogie.  Seriously. 

Anyways, back to the beautiful trail.  We had a big storm earlier in the week so there was lots of fresh snow up the canyon.  We crossed some small bridges over small little streams.

The first hour I was still thinking, heck ya - I'm totally going to do that snowshoe marathon.  So fun.  Little did I know ( I didn't wear my Garmin dangit ) I had only gone 2 miles in the first hour.  We did see a few other hikers up there and they had YAK tracks on their shoes.  I'd never seem them before but they're now on my Christmas list.  They are basically just spikes that strap on to the bottom of your shoes to run through ice and snow.  My snowshoes were a little bulky for me.  I wish I had some that were a little narrower.  But that's why you rent first, right?

By the time we got three quarters of the way up, the tracks on the trail ended.  Meaning we were the first ones to get that high up on the trail!  Sweet - fresh, un-touched powder.  Well, that is until we saw these...

Those would be moose hoof prints!  Who knew that moose needed a trail to find their way around...  And then a little farther on we saw these...

Those look familiar.  Seems our good friend, the neighborly mountain lion, was still hanging around - playing a little cat and moose.  Luckily we never saw them but with the fresh tracks they couldn't have been too far off!

We finally made it to the top of the trail, otherwise known as Elephant Rock.  It usually is a gorgeous view, but we've had a few bad air quality days, so an inversion mucked up the view a bit.  Still happy to make it up to top!

There was no running to be had in my snowshoes unfortunately.  In my short experience of snowshoeing, I'm hoping that they make smaller versions of what I was using.  Surely you have to be able to run in them.  I checked the finishing times of the marathon from last year's race and the winner finished in 5 hours!  With the pace I was moving at I'd finish in about 10.  Not sure I love snowshoeing enough to go for 10 hours straight.

So training tip for today?  Make sure to test everything before race day.  You need to test what kind of nutrition you're going to intake, how often you're going to drink water, how fast your pace is going to be, and how to run in snowshoes... : )

I still haven't ruled out the race.  I'm going to try another retailer and see some other gear and test it out.  It really would be amazing to do a marathon in the snow, especially here in Utah.  It is the best snow on Earth, ya know.  Just have to make sure I can get it finished in under 7 hours preferably.  Or else make sure there's restaurants on the course for a mid race meal...maybe a Texas Roadhouse or Chili's would suffice.

Winter scenery just doesn't get too much better than this.  Hope you're enjoying your winter season of running too!





Resonate's Running Necklace Winner!

What a great giveaway!  I'm so happy that you all loved these necklaces so much!  Unfortunately we can only have one winner.

After putting all the entries in my handy Excel spreadsheet and throwing the numbers in Random.org, our big winner this time is....

#4 - Marcia at Running Off At The Mouth!

Congratulations friend!  Email me and I'll put you in touch with the ladies at Resonate to order the necklace of your choice!  So fun!

I've still got one more giveaway before Christmas, so be sure to check back!  It's a fun one!

Just a Quick Reminder...

Don't forget to enter the Resonate's Necklace Giveaway!  You have til tonight to get your entries in for a cute necklace!

Three Things Thursday

1.  Bring on the holidays!  How do like the makeover?  Pretty cute, right.  Shout out to my marketing guy for hooking me up.  Now I just gotta work on getting my Christmas tree decorated.  It's not official til your tree is up, right?

2.  My running has gone to the crapper this week.  Either I haven't made it to the gym or when I have, I've been dragging big time.  Tired, no steam, can't complete the mileage I need to get each day.  I'm not sick, no injuries.  I don't know.  Maybe I need to cross train for the rest of the week.  My marathon is a week from Saturday and I don't want to go in tired.  Hmmm....

3.  Today is going to be one of those days.  One of those days where there's not enough hours.  One of those days when I'm reminded that I have 5 kids, a new job, holiday parties, stuff, things, obligations, blah, blah, and blah.  I have something scheduled for every hour of this day and starting at about 3:30 it triples and at 5:00 it quadruples...  Here we go...  Game on!

Speaking of holidays...this week's giveaway would make a great gift!  Don't forget to enter...