Running with the alligators (again)

As you may recall, I ran into a big alligator (NOT literally) in the Florida Everglades this past January during the Ragnar Relay.  This past Friday, I ran past two smaller (about my size - each) alligators...behind a fence....at the zoo.

Alligators are not native to San Antonio, just in case you didn't know.  But, Friday night was the Zoo Relay in Brackenridge Park - it's a 4x2 mile relay on familiar paths, but the last 1/3 mile or so is through the zoo.  Guess what?  It was hot.  So here's how it went:

Already sweating. Then there was the run.  I won't lie - I stopped to look at the alligators, turtles, cheetah (he was hiding), and flamingos.

And then I pretended I ran the whole thing like a champ.

 
And then I took a little nap while running into the finish

Luckily, I woke back up - after I remembered those alligators are still on the other side of that fence to the house right...

 

then I tried to look tough. 

 But ended up looking like a crazy running chicken

Yep, same old same old - alligators and all.  Oh, and recovery and all...

Thanks to Ceci, IAAP, Emily, Victor, Bertha, and Michele for the pics.  Whew, 2 minutes before bedtime before tomorrow's 10K...

About being behind and whined

Crud.  I'm behind again.  I would take personal responsibility and admit that, perhaps, volunteering for yet another group (neighborhood ass'n - it takes a LONG time to walk/trot 9 city blocks distributing newsletters door-to-door - who knew?).  Instead, I will eschew personal responsibility for my current state and, instead, blame it on these cats

Seriously-these jerks sucked 15 minutes of my time today (after trotting all over the neighborhood - me, not the cats), tussling over stacked 3-deep new litter boxes.  So, I watched them try to stuff 30 pounds of cats in a litter box and took pictures, wasting time until I separated the litter boxes for them to achieve peace.  I sure wish this strategy would work in Syria. 

It also didn't work here, since I just had to stop typing and stop the orange guy from smacking the grey guy, because he now wants THAT litter box.  See how that works - the cats just time bandit-ed me for almost an hour today.  And that's just 2 of 5 or so animals roaming around here.

So, back to one thing I'm behind on...I ran the SARR Labor Day Whine Run (5 miles) on Monday.  It's a pretty brutal run - hot and hilly.  And outside of my pond, so thanks to a ride from Laura, we arrived at o' dark early.

But, the lovely thing is that the venue is a vineyard! (I really like the way that sounds - say it 3x fast).

BUT - first we had to run

and here I come into the finish - but then Ruben caught me

and then this guy totally bogarted our pic!  But, we recovered like champs, saluted the judges, and continued with our synchronized swimming routine.  Oh, wait, run....

Note that Ruben even grabbed a color-coordinated sponge.  Savvy. 

And on to the best part of this run....recovery and whine.

Then, we recovered some more at Darlene & Adrian's hacienda.

And, there we go, I am all caught up.  Except that I am running two races this weekend, have not written birthday thank you notes, need to weed the front yard, need to set fire to the back jungle, and on and on - stay tuned until I post those ugly pics around Halloween.

Thanks to Victor, Bertha, Celia, Tom/SARR, and my dumb cats for the pics (cats were neither photographers nor were they harmed in this entry).

Running with other strangers

Sometimes I run with strangers.  Like here and maybe here and maybe sometimes I have not mentioned.  This is mostly due to the fact that, in my minimal research, runners are not axe murderers or serial killers.  They're generally just folks looking to make up mileage while traveling - like Shalama, her mom, and her aunt tonight.  I love it when you can just meet folks for a run - anytime, anywhere.

Still catching up...

So, this past weekend was the AuGUSTO 10k.  I didn't remember which distance I signed up for - and was pretty happy it was not the 18k.  It is possible that, if you can't remember which distances you registered for in races, you are 1) getting old 2) run too many races 3) slightly insane.  But, I eschew those notions and am claiming that I'm just a little busy and tired.  And maybe a twee bit insane.

It was a good day for a run - not over 100 degrees and not flooded - two very important things in San Antonio.

Before:

And, at the end of the course, there are two friggin uphills - which I and the gal behind me walked up....then, she tried to pass me in the finish chute.  I'm not very competitive, but I will NOT get passed in the finish chute - so BAM - I flew in to beat that chica out for 18th place, F 40-49.  Booyah.

And then, we recuperated.

And, somehow, I'm the fat gal in the pic.  I totally need to find bigger people with whom to run.

So, back to clean eating - and making my crazy veggie/fruit salad for breakfast in the morning.  Ironically, next up: Labor Day Whine Run, where I will drink healthy wine.

La Guerra's guide to running like a Mexican

I know, I know - I promised that after the Women's 5K and book (BOTTLE) club, I'd catch up.  Maybe I just promised that to myself, and possibly the critters and the voices in my head.  But the bottom line is - hasn't happened yet.  Maybe I'll just make a realistic goal, like I'll catch up by next year?

So, lately....I ran the Loteria 5K as a beer can. 

For those of you unfamiliar with the Mexican culture, with which I am obsessed, Loteria is "Mexican bingo" - there are character cards, and we dress as them for this race.  One is El Borracho (the drunk)...and we were his cervezas.

It was a little challenging to run in this costume, but not as hard as being a running jellyfish in the dark.  Here's how you can still look like a crazy running chicken, while costumed as a beer...

Here we go - this may chafe

And done....I was NOT actually drinking a beer along the run - our cans just fell off and we were trying to be environmentally conscious. (Our 'cans falling off' is NOT a euphemism.)

And, my second lesson for you in SA/Mexican culture is about beer salt - it is salt that you put on your beer (shockingly), often accompanied with a fresh lime.  Here are the beers with the beer salt folks - because this is how we run in San Antonio!

And then I had the pleasure of meeting Ceci's mama - in from Patzcuaro, MX

And that's why this Anglo gal is called La Guerra....