AF Canyon Half Marathon and a Shiny New PR!

When we booked our tickets to Utah one of the first things I did was look for a half marathon to run. Utah has some sweet downhill races and I've been itching to see what my legs could do on a downhill course. I was lucky enough to find the perfect race, running down the canyon just 15 minutes from my parents house, happening the first the weekend I would be in town. I was pumped!

On race day my nerves were all over the place, as usual. I felt really confident in my training, but a few things had me worried:

1) 4:00am call time to take bus up the canyon for 6am start time. That meant waking up at 3:30. which meant very little sleep the night before.

2) Elevation difference. I'd been training at 150 feet elevation and would be running at 5000 feet. Wasn't sure how my lungs would handle it.

3) Forgot to bring my chia seeds and energy gels which I always use in training and count on for race day fuel. Wasn't sure how my stomach would handle the shot blocks available on the course.

4) When I left the house at 4am it was already 70 degrees and the sun hadn't even come out yet. I hate running in any temp above 60 and with a forecast calling for a 95 degree high I was worried.

So with all that on my mind I definitely had to do a few rounds at the port a potty's before the race started. 

As the sun came up over the mountains we lined up at the starting line. My previous half marathon PR was 1:56:37. My goal was to break 1:50, but my stretch goal, was 1:45. That's an 8:00 min mile pace, which I'd never been able to pull off in a training run longer than 6 miles, but I was hoping the downhill course would pull me through.  So with that goal in mind, I lined up with the 1:45 pace group and at the sound of the gun we were off!

The canyon was nice and cool and the scenery was gorgeous. I had the 1:45 pace group in my sights but I also wanted to run my own race, so when they took off I held back a little, easing into the race and clocking my first mile at an 8:07 pace. I knew I was going to have to pick it up to make my goal so I finished mile 2 in 7:45.  After that my legs were warmed up and I flew through mile 3 in 6:37, passing the 1:45 pace group. I knew that was too fast so I backed off a little and mile 4 was a steady 7:27.

At that point my lungs felt good but my quads were already starting to take a beating from running downhill. It also became clear to me at mile 4 that if I didn't find a bathroom soon things were going to get ugly. No port a potty between mile 4 and 5. Clocked it in 7:16 and started running faster, hoping to find a pit stop soon. I was tempted to duck into the woods, but the kind of um..."relief" I needed required...well...toilet paper. So yeah, I kept running. I started running faster, praying there was a port a potty coming up soon and finally at mile 6.5 it was there! I sprinted to the John and tried to take care of business as quickly as one can take care of that sort of business, which in this case, didn't seem very quick at all. In the end it cost me 2 minutes but I felt like a new person when I came out of the Lou so it was worth it. I started running again and to my relief, could still see the 1:45 pacer, even though she was about 30 seconds ahead of me. I figured as long as I kept her in my sights I would reach my goal.

Mile 7 was 7:26, mile 8 was 7:40. That's when we came out of the canyon and the course started to flatten out and even sport little hills here and there. Nothing major but after flying downhill earlier they slowed me down. Another slowing factor at this point was the sun. It was out in full force and the temperature was rising quickly. Mile 9 was 7:51, mile 10 7:52. I was tired at this point and so were the people around me. I started thinking that a 1:50 wouldn't be so bad. After all, it would still be a big PR for me. I flirted with the idea of walking but then I would shake my head and say no, even if I don't break 1:45 I will NOT stop to walk.

As I subconsciously battled with my will I thought I heard someone shout my name. At first I shook it off but then I heard it again, and again! I looked around and saw my awesome friends, Justin and Tara, cheering me on, taking pictures and shouting my name! I had no idea they would be there, it was the best surprise ever! I know what a big deal it is to try to be somewhere early on a Saturday morning, especially with 3 kids! But there they were, kids in tow, everyone bright eyed and bushy tailed. I was blown away. Once I knew I had a cheering section it lit a fire inside me and I decided to fight for that 1:45 no matter what. 

Mile 11 was rough, 8:04. A teenage boy I'd been following the whole race stopped and started to walk. I pulled his shirt and said, "Come on! 2 miles to go, we got this!" He mustered his strength and we helped each other get through the next mile in 7:49. 12 miles down, 1.1 to go. We saw another gal stop to walk and pulled her into our group. It was all we could do to put one foot in front of the other but we kept soldiering on. Half way through that last mile the teenage boy dropped back, so did the gal we'd picked up. But I wasn't stopping. "This is the price of a PR" I told myself. 

As I rounded the corner towards the finish line I heard my name again. This time it was my sisters, Naomi and Sarah, and my little nieces, all shouting "GO BECCA!" and waving signs. 

 I tried to smile but all I could do was grimace. I know I look pretty terrible in this pic, but in my mind I was thinking, "wow! My sisters love me!" and also, "I think I'm gonna puke..."

Tara snapped this shot as I gave one last push to the finish. 

Official time: 1:43:09

pace: 7:53 min/mile

Age division: 23rd out of 175 

Gender division: 72nd out 786 

173rd out of 1165 overall

 New PR by over 13 minutes!!! 

I felt fast. I felt good. I felt like eating a hamburger.

 In the finishers area I was able to reunite with Justin and Tara and their cute kids and give them big hugs and thank yous for cheering me on! Love those guys!

Also got to see my sisters and nieces and thank them for being my cheerleaders. As good as it feels to run a solid race, it's 100 times better when you can celebrate with people you love.

Downhill courses are definitely where it's at! So glad I found this race, it was a highlight of my trip.  In the end I came home with a shiny new medal and a sparkly new PR. Two excellent souvenirs from my Utah vacation.

Utah part 1: Unofficial Reunion before the Reunion

Last month we went to Utah for the first ever Uda family reunion. Even though the whole Uda clan wouldn't be together until the official reunion dates, I decided to fly out a week early with the kids to maximize the time with my family.

The girls were in heaven spending every minute of the day with their cousins. 

Most of the time was spent in their swim suits. Dipping in the pool, running through the sprinklers and playing with water balloons.

Uncle Tau and Uncle Ro holding still for the water balloon firing squad. They took some good hits but then went running after the kids for some revenge. Lots of happy squealing and laughter.

I stayed at my sister Rachel's house which was perfect because our girls all play and get along like BFFs. It's also conveniently located 10 steps away from my Mom's house, so we were in the center of the action and got to see plenty of everyone :)

Brinsie and Grandma Uda

Teya and Papa Uda

 On Sunday my dad requested that me, Rachel, Naomi and Sarah (who is 5 months pregnant with her 3rd baby boy) sing in sacrament meeting. It was so awesome being able to sing with my sisters again. Brought back lots of good memories.

 On another day Me, Naomi and Sarah were feeling brave and took our 7 kids plus 3 extra cousins to the BYU creamery and the Bean Museum.  It was chaotic, and a little exhausting, but I think the kids had fun so it was worth it.

We tried to get our offspring to pose at the museum. Noa and Lily were making crusties, Brooklyn was poking her eye, Maile forgot to smile, Malia, Micah, Lily and Cam weren't looking at the camera, and Cam kept trying to escape so David had to snag him by the collar to keep him there for at least one picture. All that considered though, not a bad pic! lol!

 The kids had a great time at the museum.  Cam was especially intrigued by all the displays.

 I love his face in this picture. "ALLIGATOR!"

Later in the week I left Cam at home and took Teya, Brinley, Mason and Maile out for some frozen yogurt. They thought I was the coolest auntie/mommy ever :)

But the real coolest mommy ever award goes to my mom, who watched ALL of our kids so we could go on a sibling date to Bajio and then grab some sweets from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate factory. I have dreams about the mouth watering green chile chicken salad from Bajio and crave it constantly. Being able to finally eat one was pure heaven! We had a great time talking and laughing at the restaurant. My siblings are THE best and I always have so much fun when I'm with them. 

I'm glad I was able to go out early before the reunion. Other highlights include:

 1) funniest game of truth or dare with my siblings ever! (I seriously almost wet my pants from laughing so hard)

2) Special dinner movie date with just me and my parents. (It is a rare and awesome thing to get one on one time with the rents)

3) Listening to my little brother talk about politics (He's a smart one)

4) Eating lots and lots and lots and lots of yummy delicious food

5) Running my fastest half marathon ever (separate post to come for that!)

6) All the great one on one chats I had with my parents and siblings. 

7) Just being with my wonderful family. 

More posts to come, including a mini-sub reunion in Colorado with Taber's family. Stay tuned...

I kind of have the best mother in law ever... June 17-20

When my sweet mother in law found out that I was flying out to Utah all alone with 3 kids, she generously offered to fly out and help me. My niece has been wanting to come out too so they both hopped on a plane and came out to play for a few days before helping us fly back to UT.

We only had a few days to play but we made the most of it! We hit the mall and Grandma Karen treated me to a shopping spree for some much needed clothes while she watched the kids at the play place.  Yeah, my mother in law rocks. :)

Teya and Brinley loved spending time with their cousin Skyla. She is the only girl in her family with 4 brothers, so she really enjoyed having some girl time. 

After the mall we did some trampoline jumping.

 And took a nice stroll with Grammy.

The next day Grandma Karen kindly offered to watch Cam all day so I could take the girls to the beach. (Cam can only handle the beach in small doses)

Without little brother slowing them down, the girls were busy little beach bugs! They were constantly on the go.

 Love this shot of all three of them running into the waves.

Sheer joy and happiness.

Beautiful Skyla looking like a beach model. Hard to believe she was only 3 weeks old when Taber and I got married. How did she grow up so fast?

 Little Brinsie showing off her pineapple suit. 

 Taking a break from the water to dig in the sand.

 Which led to Sklya getting buried.

 Beach babes :)

Caught this shot of Skyla climbing the rocks and thought she looked pretty grown up here too. Crazy to think that Teya will be that age in just 4 years!

The next day it was off to Utah. Our flight got pushed back by 5 hours, so what I had carefully planned to be a day time flight, ended up being more of a red eye.

The girls did great though with Sklya there to help them.

And between me, Grandma Karen and the iPad, we were able to survive 5 hours of flying in the middle of the night with Mr. grumpy pants. There were only too major scream fests that lasted about 30 minutes each, and with Karen as my back up it really didn't seem too bad. So grateful to have such an awesome mother in law to do that for me. She's pretty much the best mother in law ever :)

Father's Day: June 19, 2012

Usually on Father's day I like to take over all the tough kid duty so Taber can just relax and enjoy being  king for the day. This year however, Father's day fell on the same day as Stake conference. 2 hours in sacrament meeting setting is hard enough with both of us, but I was singing in the choir and had to be on the stand the whole time, so poor Taber was down in the trenches wrangling the kids all on his own.  From the choir loft I watched him valiantly struggle to keep everyone quiet and entertained. He was in and out several times with Cam and finally relocated to the very back where he stood and bounced Mr. busy body to keep him pacified. At one point there were probably 5 or 6 Dad's all standing on the back row bouncing babies. It was actually really sweet to see them back there earning their stripes on Father's Day. 

In one of the talks the speaker said, "your children, with their arms wrapped around your necks, make you beautiful". I thought that was especially true watching Taber with the kids that day. 

Taber is extremely handsome, no doubt, but seeing him with our children is what makes him so attractive to me. 

(Taber with his grilling accessory Father's day presents)

Guess that's why one of the things I love most about my husband is the fact that he's a really really really good father. He is present, devoted, engaged, and actively involved in every aspect of our kid's lives. Whenever he has free time all he wants to do is spend it with them. When he was on paternity leave after I had Cam he was so excited because it meant he could volunteer at Teya's preschool! He was in heaven :) He relishes every milestone and lives for making special memories for the kids. I'm grateful that my children have such an amazing Daddy who loves them and loves being with them. 

Happy (belated) Father's Day to the best Dad in the world!

Rockin' RibFest June 16, 2012

Where there are ribs, and where there's a "fest",  the Riggs are sure to be present! This is our 3rd year in a row attending the Rockin' RibFest and even though it's a little crazier now with 3 kids, we love going for that award winning BBQ! SO GOOD!

 See, if wasn't good, the lines wouldn't be this long. So many choices! 

 If you're not a rib lover there's also such fine fair as kettle corn, funnel cakes, apple crisps, cotton candy, ice cream and of course, deep friend Oreo's. Oh yeah!

We of course, are there for the ribs. I kind of want to frame this picture and put it on the ceiling above our bed, so every morning when we wake up we see a little piece of heaven. :)

 This year even Teya tapped into her inner Riggie carnivore. YUM! 

 Brinley and Cam are still sticking with pizza but I have high hopes for next year.

 Besides awesome food there were also some ridiculously expensive  fun things for the kids to do. :) The girls got sparkle glitter tattoos that lasted a week and they were in little hog heaven.

 We also got them passes for the bounce houses/carnival rides and let them go buck wild. The lines were kind of long but once they got on the rides they were all smiles.

I took this pic while they were waiting in line for one of the bounce houses. Doesn't that just melt your heart? These two are the bestest best friends in the universe. 

This one melted my heart too. My manly rib eating Alaska boy pushing our little son in a stroller. There's just something so sweet about a doting daddy. 

It was a great night of food and fun. Definitely one of my favorite NH traditions. 

Cruisin' in the kitchen :)

Cam does a lot of cruising around the house courtesy of his big sisters. They love to push him on anything that has wheels.

Which he great because he loves being pushed. Look at that happy cheeser face! 

His high chair has wheels too. One night the girls high jacked him during dinner and started joy riding around the kitchen. I caught this shot of them in action. Man I love my kids. In life there are up days and down days, but even on the down days, these three always make me smile :)

Fitness University 2012!

Summer is here and the kids are out of school and in to Fitness University! Once a week we head to the high school track and field for an hour and half of stretching, running, relay games and fitness lessons for our future track stars :) 

 Teya warming up on the field with her friends Julia and Mia

 Brinley on the track getting ready for her first "heat" :)

 And she's off! Go Brinley Go!

 Cam also enjoys cruising around the track and trying to crash all the activities of the big kids. He still has a year and half before he can join the fun but in the mean time he's getting lots of good practice and being a great cheerleader for the girls.

See how enthusiastic he is?! Fitness University Rocks!