Marathon Blowout

The Walt Disney World Marathon was my 50th marathon.  It was supposed to be a nice little fun run,
 with Jim and my dog Dune meeting me at the finish.  Little did I know going into this event that it was going to be a total blowout!

Let me first say that it was never my goal to run 50 marathons.  When I signed up to do my first marathon back in 1994 it was my intention to run a marathon, just one marathon, and simply add it to my list of accomplishments.  I never dreamed that I would go on to run many more marathons and later, ultramarathons.

There is no particular reason why Disney was my 50th race.  I have treated most of my marathons as training runs for my upcoming ultramarathon races.  I don't taper for these races and I don't do anything special for them.  Sometimes I run with a 15 pound pack on...sometimes not.  Sometimes I put in a 2 hour run before the race, sometimes not.  Sometimes I will do a 3 hour run the day before, sometimes not.  So my times generally don't matter to me.  My best is 3:36...my slowest...5:42.

Disney just turned out to be the next race on the calendar, and coincidentally it was the 20th Anniversary of the event and so the medal was pretty nice.  I drove up to Orlando the day before the race and went to the Expo to pick up my race bib.  From there I checked into a hotel and Jim and I walked across the street to have supper at the Olive Garden.

For as long as I can remember I have had either spaghetti and meat sauce the night before the race, or lasagna.  Sometimes I will even have a glass of red wine with it.  Well, for some reason, and I have no idea why...I decided to try something different.  I broke the cardinal rule of never doing something new for a race.  I had a gigantic plate of chicken and shrimp carbonara with a glass of white wine.  It was good!  We walked back to the hotel and I watched a bit of TV and fell asleep.

Disney starts at 5am!  This is a good thing because you are done early, but man, it is hard to get up at 3am for a race!  I always bring my electric espresso maker with me and had two cups of coffee.  It was strange because I always have a bowel movement after my coffee, but not on this day.  Odd I thought.

Jim dropped me off at the Epcot entrance, and I headed off toward my corral.  It is a fair walk to get there but the weather was nice this year.  We all listened to the National Anthem, and watched all the fireworks go off and then we were on our way!  I have done Disney three times before this....2009...2010(I did the Goofy Race and a Half Challenge...the Half-Marathon on Saturday, and the Marathon on Sunday) and 2012.

The race started off all right and then it hit me.  I had to go the bathroom.  I had a bowel movement coming around and I knew it wasn't going to be good.  This was going to get ugly.  I needed to find a bathroom right now!  I was scared to death I was going to crap my pants right then and there, and it was taking all I had to hold back and pinch everything in.  Finally, a port-o-potty in sight.  I hopped around waiting for my turn, and then dashed inside.  Explosive diarrhea.  Oh my God!  It was terrible.  I had already broken a sweat from my run, and I had to deal with the mess of wiping my butt with toilet paper that was sticking to my sweaty hands and butt.  Gross.  I yanked up my tights and headed back out to the swarm of runners.

A little further down the road it hit me again.  I was on the hunt again for another port-a-potty.  I found one, and again, a massive burst of fluid.  Damn...it was that Pasta Carbonara coming back to haunt me!  As a veteran I should have known better.  Once you get to the point where you have run so many races, you can begin to become a little blase about things.  These marathons are just training runs for me, and so I can get a little sloppy sometimes in my preparations.  It was a lesson well-learned...DO NOT DO ANYTHING NEW BEFORE A RACE!  You will pay for it!!!

By mile 13 I had visited 7 port-a-potties.  Toward this point, my visits were just producing little trickles, but I certainly wasn't going to take any chances.  My sphincter was saying I am going to blow, and I would head to a toilet.  Who wants to crap their pants in a training run?  Especially in a run where there are hundreds of people passing me by now? 

Okay, so now the runs are over with but I am left with a burning ring of fire.  My butt is screaming by this point.  And then I begin to develope cramps.  Major gas pains.  I didn't want to let the gas out in case something else came out with it...so I was holding everything in.  My stomach was really cramping up on me, and I was bloated like you would not believe.  Finally, I stopped at a medical tent and asked them if they carried any gas relieving medication.  They handed me some tablets and I gratefully accepted them and popped them in my mouth.  I was having some major belches for the next hour or so...it's all foggy to me now.  It was just one long hurtfest. 

This sights...oh yeah...there were a few.  Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy...yadda, yadda, yadda.  I can always appreciate a beautiful trail...but interrupting my race to run over and stand in a line to get my picture taken with Mickey is not high up on my To Do list.  But I did pull over to get my picture with this dude!  How perfect!  I love how a total stranger can make your whole day!

The finish line finally came into sight, and hey, I was starting to feel much better!  I think I was ready to run another race!  I hadn't pushed myself for speed and my legs weren't tired or sore.  It had just ended up being a very lazy run.  My final time....hold on, let me look it up...I don't even know it one week later....OKay, I just checked....4:48:42.  Remember, this time reflects 7 port-a-potty breaks and a medical tent stop.  I like the Age Graded time better... 4:02:11.

Pretty slow!  But heck...it made for a memorable 50th!  I don't usually get roses after a race, but Jim surprised me at the finish and gave me a kiss to make everything all better!  And the medal was pretty darn nice too, so that helped take the edge off! That was last weekend...January 13th,2013. (I refuse to believe 13 is unlucky) I have this weekend off, and then I am registered for the Miami Marathon next weekend...January 27th.  You can be sure that I will be eating LASAGNA the night before the race, and I won't be doing anything different in my routine!!!

In my next blog I will post about some of the more memorable marathons I have done over the years...the weird, the wild, the wonderful... the weather!  You name it...there have been some crazy runs.  I'll tell you all about it next week.

Venice

Once you see Venice you will never forget it.  This may sound obvious, but the first time I saw this beautiful city I  was only 8 years old...and the impression it made on me as a young girl remained with me until I saw it again this year.  I remember being in awe of the canals and the beautiful buildings.  I remember buying two little treasures... glass bluebird earrings, and a tiny mauve glass fawn.  They became my most precious possessions!  I always wanted to go back and visit the city as an adult, and so on this trip to Italy, I made sure we pencilled in a day to visit this city on water.

It was everything I remembered...but for two things.  There were way more tourists than I recalled...and not as many pigeons gathered in St. Mark's Square! 

It was a long day.  We left Florence first thing in the morning and took the train to the main terminal in Venice.  As soon as we got outside, the city spilled out in front of us and was dazzling right from the start.  We wanted to do a lot of walking, as opposed to travelling on water.  First thing in the morning it isin't so bad...but the later in the day it got, the more crowded it became.  I just do not like being in crowds. 15 million people a year come here... Venice is almost like an adult Disneyland!  No rides, but lots of people!  I just wanted to absorb the sights and sounds.

We walked around the entire city.  It is made up of 117 islands and has 150 canals connected by bridges.  We enjoyed the main thoroughfairs, but also got some respite by venturing off the main walkways and getting lost in the alleys.  The architecture really is magnificent, and the canals are so clean!  Surprising, since Venice has no sewer system.  Sewage flows from homes into the canals and is swept out to the ocean with the tides.  But don't get me wrong, you didn't see any waste in the water, and there was absolutely no litter.

Venice is slowly sinking.  The level of the land has lowered, and the sea levels have risen.  Major flooding regularly occurs now between November and March.

One of the most photographed images in Venice is that of the Gondolas and the gondoliers.  There are about 400 in use today to transport visitors back and forth along the many canals.  By law the gondolas are painted with black lacquer.  They are made of 8 different types of wood and are composed of 280 pieces.  To be a gondolier you need to obtain a special license issued by a guild.  Especially noteworthy...in 2010 the first woman was licensed to become a gondolier!

 

 

 

By the time we reached St. Mark's square we were exhausted.  We just did not have the appetite to stand in line to go inside the church...but we had worked up an appetite to eat!  We were starving and ended up sitting down at a little cafe for some delicious Calamari and a glass of white wine.  It was great fun to just sit back and people watch!

 

 

 

Later I did a little shopping.  I wanted to bring home some masks.  I found out there are three types of masks...the beautiful handmade masks that are worth a fortune...there are factory made masks made in Italy...and there are Venetian masks made in China!  I thought that was a joke when I was told that...but sure enough...many of the cheap ones are made in China.  It was very easy to tell the difference between the most expensive masks and the least expensive.  The handmade ones are simply stunning works of art.  I bought a few of the factory made in Italy masks.  They were just too fun to resist!

 

What I did not know about was the history of the mask that features the long beak.  It originated in the 17th Century.  A Doctor donned this mask to treat bubonic plague victims.  The mask was white and he wore a black cloak with it and a black hat.  He wore white gloves and carried a stick to move the bodies.  It was hoped all of this would help prevent him from catching the dreaded disease. Other Doctors followed suit.  This is a modern day version of the beaked mask...I love it!

At the end of the day we were ready to go home.  We had a little time to kill so we stopped to have a drink.  Our waiter asked if we wanted a small beer or a big beer.  Jim asked for a big glass of draft ... and this is what he got!!!  Luckily the train had restrooms...or we would have been in trouble! 

This was probably the last time I will see Venice...and I am so glad we spent the day here.  It truly is one of the most beautiful cities on earth...and it may not be around forever.  The ocean may claim this jewel one day...and only divers will be able to enjoy it.

Beautiful Florence, Italy!

Florence is the city of my dreams.  I love it here!  What stands out for me?  The food, the wine, the art and the architecture. 

 

 

Ultramarathon running has taken me all over the world and allowed me to learn about other countries.  I love taking in the new sights and sounds.  I enjoy meeting the local people and learning about their customs.  I love running where no other tourists visit...and then pampering myself in the towns or cities close by.

I have actually been to Italy before this, but as a child.  My father was a fighter pilot for the Canadian forces and we were based for 2 years in Sardinia.  I think this is where I first fell in love with Italy, Italians and with the sand!  I remember playing in the sand on the beach and chasing around the beetles.  My parents took my brother and me along for a trip through Italy and we visited Venice...which I vividly remember as well.  How can the beauty of that city ever leave your memory once you have been there?

Growing up in Sardinia.  I am in the foreground...

So, I guess in a way, going to Italy was like going home!  We left Courmayeur in Northern Italy and took a bus to Aosta.  We then hopped on 2 different trains that took us from Aosta to Milan... and then transferred to a third train bound for Florence. 

Our hotel was about a 5 minute taxi ride from the train station....Hotel Kursaal & Ausonia.  We chose this place because it looked really quaint and was within a 20 minute walk of all the major sights.  Because we had moved up our dates to stay in the hotel, they had rebooked us to spend a few nights in a regular double room and then move and spend a few nights in a suite.  Once we arrived and chatted with the owner...he moved us into the suite for the entire week at the same price as a double room!

 

Our suite was beautiful.  After spending a week in Paris once in a teeny tiny room where we could barely walk around the bed without tripping over the luggage...this was luxury!  We had an entryway, a sitting room, a full kitchen (with everything needed to cook with) a huge bathroom with a jacuzzi tub, and a master bedroom.  Our kitchen window looked out into the neighborhood and we could see the Duomo in the distance.

Our first stop was the Duomo.  This is a huge gothic style structure that was completed in 1436.  It is very unusual in that the exterior of the basilica is covered in various shades of pink, green and white marble.  It features the largest brick dome ever built.  We climbed up the dome and the views of Florence were spectacular!  We could also go inside the dome and see the incredible mural painted on the ceiling.  Stunning!  I have included a picture of Jim standing in the stairwell.  Can you believe they actually have to put up signs asking people not to leave graffiti on the walls of the church?  It is revolting how people see nothing wrong about defacing a national treasure by inscribing their names.  I just don't get it.

Another incredible sight in Florence is the Statue of David which stands in the Galleria dell'Accademia.  It is the most beautiful piece of work I have ever seen.  This sculpture looks real, I mean it really looks like a living, breathing being.  The skin looks soft, the veins look like the blood is coursing through them...the muscles seem at rest, yet somehow ready and tensed to move at any moment.  It is really chilling how awesome it is.  It is 17 feet tall and weighs an incredible 6 tons.  This marble statue was sculpted by Italian artist Michelangelo in two years.  Two years!  I wonder at how an artist can see his form through the rock.

Every day we would try and take in a sight or two...but we also just enjoyed living there for a week.  Every morning we would head out to the Central Market to buy our food for the day.  Jim loves to cook and he is Italian...so this was his mecca if you will.  By the end of the week we had our favorite shops and vendors that we liked to visit and buy from. 

What can be better than wine, cheese and bread?  We shopped for olives, vegetables, pasta, herbs, fruit, mushrooms...it was absolute heaven!  There was one stand that selled Offal.  I'm sorry, but Offal to me is just awful...really.  It basically means the organs and entrails of butchered animals.  You could buy cow stomachs, brains, liver and bull penis.  Yes, if you look in the picture below those are bull penises in the top right hand corner.  Now I have eaten " prairie oysters" before (bull testicles breaded and fried) but I think I have to draw the line at penis.  I mean really, just looking at it....nope.

We would start our day off with Italian espresso along with a chocolate croissant.  We would sightsee for awhile, and then take a break and go home to have a little lunch.  We were bad!  We would have some white wine along with some tomatoes and fresh mozzarella tossed in olive oil, balsamic vinegar and fresh basil.  Decadent!  Then we would have a little afternoon nap.  Jim was still really sick with bronchitis and it didn't get any better until we got home to Florida.  Mine cleared up in a week.  We got lots of rest and ate really well to enable us to get healthy again!

I learned a lot about the foods that are revered in Italy...like Balsamic Vinegar. The finest Balsamic comes from Modena and neighboring Reggio Emilia.  You can find cheap bottles with newer batches of vinegar...to the finest Balsamic which can be aged up to 100 years and cost a small fortune.  It is literally kept in special cases and is treated like the world's best champagnes!  We saw a 100 ml bottle that was going for the asking price of  $850!

Olive oil is another treasure.  Italy, Spain and Greece are the major olive oil producers in the world...supplying 75 percent of world production!  Extra Virgin olive oil is judged to have a superior taste.  There are actually allegations that producers in Spain and Italy are passing off olive oil as extra virgin...when it's not.  Fake oil!  And in 2008, Italian police conducted "Operation Golden Oil"...arresting 23 people involved in a scheme to take oil from other countries and relabel it Italian.  Corruption, food fraud, scheming and conniving all in the name of profit in the olive oil industry.  Who knew?!!!

We would work up an appetite with our walks...(we didn't go for any runs)  The Ponte Vecchio bridge was about a half hour stroll from our hotel.  It is a famous medieval stone bridge that used to have butcher shops on it.  The butchers would dump all of their waste from the bridge into the Arno river below.  Now the shops are all high-end gold, silver and gem stores.  I didn't even do any window shopping since the only jewelry that interests me are ethnic pieces from Africa and the Middle East. 

The Uffizi Gallery contains the greatest collection of Italian paintings anywhere, along with the star piece...The Birth of Venus by Italian artist Sandro Botticelli.  This painting is said to be one of the most recognizable images in art history.  It depicts the birth of the Goddess of Love.  The God of Winds is blowing her ashore in a floating seashell ... while another goddess awaits on land with a floral robe to cover her with.  Of course I had to go into the shops afterward and purchase my fridge magnet and eyeglass cleaning cloth and umbrella ... all with Venus on it!  I'm a sucker for some of the tourist crap!

I will always remember trying to get out of that museum.  I swear I spent more time wandering around trying to get out...than I did in looking at all of the art.  At every exit there were security people telling you that you can't go out this way...and pointing vaguely down the hall to another way of exiting.  And I wasn't the only one that appeared to be exasperated...there were dozens of people wandering around...looking for a way out!  I saw one person sleeping on a bench in there...and I guessed they probably just gave up.  Might as well wait until closing and get someone to show you the door! (They could use some race flags to show the way!)


So now it was time to eat again...I swear I don't know how much I would weigh if I didn't run, because I love to eat!!!  Time for some of that wine and cheese I was talking about!  Parmesiano Reggiano is the reigning cheese of Italy.  I have always loved to buy a block of aged Parmesan and then shred it over pasta or eat small chunks with wine.  Authentic versions carry a mark with the producers registration number, along with the year and month of production.  The older the cheese, the sharper the taste.  The oldest I could find was 8 years old.

As for wine...I had to drink Chianti.  It is usually thought of as the wine in a bottle enclosed by a staw basket, which is actually called "fiasco" or "flask".  But the straw covered bottles are only used by a few wine makers now.  Chianti is Italy's largest wine region and produces 8 million cases a year!  I think I should have shares in one of the vineyards!  We loved the Chianti over our many meals of pasta!

And what better to have after dinner than Italian gelato!  In Florence we tried out the sorbet, with strawberry and mango being our favorites! Italy is the only country in the world where there is more handmade ice cream consumed than factory produced!

  One night we made the mistake of deciding to have grappa instead of gelato.  Grappa is served as an after dinner drink.  It is an Italian brandy that can range from 70 to 120 proof.  Wow!  It reminded me of my days in University when we used to drink the odd shot of Everclear!  It goes down hot and then warms up and numbs the body.  One shot was enough!

We took one day off from strolling through Florence and decided to head to Venice for the day!  What could be better than a nice leisurely day in Venice with supper at a restaurant next to one of the world-famous canals?!  That will be my next post...