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Latest reviews by Laura Orange
Laura Orange recommends this race
(2021)
"RUNNING WITH BIBRAVE BY THE WARM BEACH OF STATE #10"
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This was my first in person half marathon as a bibrave pro. I have been anxiously awaiting live races and meeting fellow bibrave ambassadors, (as all of us have). My goal was to try for an under 2 hour half marathon. However, I did not plan or train as I should have. During the months leading up to the race I actually completed my RRCA coaching certificate and now have so much more knowledge to apply to training.
The Run
The race started at 8 am at Jarvis park, which was a pleasant time of day. Many races start so darn early. There are not many uber drivers on the island, so be sure to schedule your ride for the morning the night before. Our Uber driver was filled with knowledge about the island, including Hilton Head has been named best destination island by Conde Nest for 5 years running! I met up with fellow bibrave runner’s from across the country and we toed the start line with 1500 other people. There was not a wave start so the beginning was shuffling and slow like cattle. I was aiming for negative splits so we started at a comfortable 9:45 pace. The first time I looked at my watch we were already past mile 2 and felt strong.
We corralled through Jarvis park and hit the highway, literally. Running along the highway that was partially closed for the event and over a bridge. (Which was the only elevation gain along the whole race). About 6 miles in, we switched back to park trail running with beautiful canopy trees above us. The race had felt so smooth, and Jenn and I were surprised with how easy it felt. Mile 8 came and my right knee started bugging me as always. Luckily my beta endorphins kicked in by mile 9 and dimmed down the pain a bit. By mile 10 I knew there was no chance at an under two hour half marathon for me. So I decided just to enjoy the run with my best friend. The finish line was back in Jarvis park and the crowds cheers were so inspiring to hear. Especially after a two year hiatus of running during covid.
The After party
The park playground was filled with laughing kids enjoying the outdoors. There was grab-and-go pizza and free beer at the finish line, which is always a bonus. We enjoyed our grub watching the alligators swim along slowly. Yup, that’s right, Alligators! Overall, Hilton Head Island was a beautiful course and location. I would recommend wave starts though if I really sought out to accomplish my goal time.
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Laura Orange recommends this race
(2021)
"MARIN ENDURANCE SPRINT TRIATHLON ON THE BEAUTIFUL COAST OF CALIFORNIA"
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This year has been my biggest racing season yet. Four half marathons, two of which were back to back in different states, and my first attempt at a sprint triathlon on the beautiful coast of California.
I have an aversion to cold water. Ironic, because I voluntarily signed up for competitive swim in high school. I recall sitting on the stoop of the pool every practice convincing my mind, “just do it. Just jump in the pool. Everybody else is already in”. My mind would twirl around the thought of getting cold in the water and continue to escalate how much, I didn’t want to get in. My coach would nearly have to push me in the water. I hate cold water, and the spiteful pain it immerses you in instantly. However I loved swimming.
After the initial shock of cold, my skin would go numb. I would feel almost euphoric, like I was the best (junior varsity) swimmer to ever be! Unbeknownst to my 16 year old mind, cold water immersion increases the blood dopamine level by 250%, and dopamine is the Neurochemical that allows you to feel pleasure, satisfaction and motivation. Hence, after discovering endurance exercise, such as running a half marathon in each state, releases similar escalated levels of dopamine, I’ve always considered the challenge of completing a triathlon.
When BibRave offered a local triathlon on the beautiful coast of California, I literally jumped out of my seat for the opportunity. This was it. This was my chance to really challenge my fitness. I signed up for the Sprint triathlon. I was tempted to go straight for the Olympic Tri, however luckily I thought better to start where I belonged, as a novice. After much preparation, The day before the race I had woken up at 2 am, as I usually do, and checked my email.
“Important Update Regarding Marin Triathlon”
“Attention fellow Triathletes,
We have been informed by Marin County Parks that McNears Beach Park has failed the water quality test executed by Marin County Environmental Health Services. Your health and safety are our utmost priority and the water for our swim portion has not been deemed a safe environment for our athletes.
Therefore, the swim portion of the Marin Triathlon cannot take place on Saturday.”
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence is based on the premise of having a thought, followed by an emotion, which creates an action. I weighed my options. I could have easily not participated, but what would that have taught me? The thought presented: the swim portion was cancelled. My emotion was both relief and disappointment. My action was not quitting. I got to Choose my action. I chose to try my best at a bike and run event and be thankful for the opportunity.
The Marin Endurance festival was still epic and my very first competition on a bike. The course was still challenging, and I am ready to take on the swim portion, in addition to the bike and run next year. Plus I am extremely grateful the race director did not let us swim in unsafe waters. On to the bike!
“YES, I DON’T HAVE TO GET IN THAT COLD PACIFIC OCEAN!” the cold water aspect of me cheered. Of course immediately followed by the disappointment of, “This means I technically failed my first triathlon”. My 2am brain started overflowing, “Gosh, if I don’t compete in the swim portion of the Tri, should I even compete at all? I could save my energy and do a long run in preparation for my half marathon in two weeks instead”.
“It’s just like riding a bike”. The expression itself refers to how easy it is to remember how to ride a bike, even after a long time of absence. So I may have undertrained for this aspect of the event. I was fortunate enough to borrow a road bike from a friend; and my first thirty minutes on the bike in training was exhilarating! I even went so far as to say, I enjoyed riding a bike more than running. And although, yes, it was ‘just like riding a bike’, my thighs and ankles were not accustomed to the endurance cycling put on them.
The Marin Endurance triathlon is up and down hills. The very entrance of the course is a challenging upslope to get to the main road. I was not quite prepared for the competitive aspect of this race. I can’t tell you how many times I heard fellow cyclists warn me, “On your left!”. Sometimes I wanted to shout back, “I know guys, I get the point.” I was slow AF. Although I was far below par shifting gears between uphill easy gears and downhill thick gears to push forward, the race was still exhilarating. The scenery was unbeatable with the pacific ocean waves crashing softly on the shore.
The air was stagnant with humidity, yet comforting, almost sour from the ocean salt.
It reminded me constantly of baking homemade sourdough bread on Sundays. The bike course is 4 miles out and back. It seemed almost like the first 4 miles was solely downhill, so I feared the return would be mainly uphill. Oddly, the return had a fair amount of up and downs as well. On to the Run aspect of the sprint triathlon!
The Run, this was my jive. I’m by no means a superior athlete of running. But I was pretty confident I could run a 5K in my sleep. After the smooth transition beside the ocean, I dropped my bike and tied my running shoes on. Running was familiar. All I had to do was finish at this point, a 5K. Like I said ‘I could do a 5k in my sleep’. And then my realization, Holy thighs! What a narcissist ideation that I could jump from a bike to a run without ever previously trying it before! My grandiose ideation of myself meant I could complete a 5k without ever trying the transition. silly me. I ran passed my sister after 0.1 miles of the run and recall whimpering, “ouch! this hurts!” Duh, Laura, it’s going to hurt. So I sought out to endure the 5K.
Again, the start was straight uphill to get to the road. What a cruel way to start a course, and yet Marin Endurance knew exactly what they were doing. Us athlete’s love this challenge. After that initial uphill there was a downhill along the coast. There was a soft mist caressing the left side of my face for most of the run. So much so, I couldn’t tell if it was a breeze from the ocean or actually raining. There was a small sign with a hand written ‘5k turn here’ sign on the road. There were many runners continuing beyond the sign with ease (perhaps for the olympic tri), which of course had me questioning myself,
“do I turn here, am I cheating off the course?”
Luckily I stumbled upon a man in short shorts with bright red hair for direction. He was confident. He was supporting other runners. I realized he was merely a runner, just like me, yet with confidence. He easily told me, “my watch says we’re at 1.7 miles, we’re past half way, it’s ok to turn around”. Thank you short shorts red hair man, I definitely needed that reassurance.
The water continually beat my face, only from the right side this time. This wasn’t just a pass of the ocean, it was raining from the heaven’s above. My thighs hurt, my chest hurt, my mind hurt. I saw the expressions of all those around me, we were struggling with the wind and rain beating us. At no point did I consider I couldn’t make it. My mind was humbled, gracious, appreciative. This Triathlon hurt, and that’s exactly what I had anticipated. I passed the finish line with Katrina, my sister, cheering me on. My first Triathlon, technically a Biathlon. I still felt very accomplished and cannot wait to participate in this event again next year.
Laura Orange recommends this race
(2020)
"DC WONDER WOMAN VIRTUAL RUN: HOW TO STAY ACTIVE DURING THIS PANDEMIC"
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I believe that all runner’s are Wonder Women at heart. Doesn’t matter if you’re fast or slow; if you get out there and put the miles in, you’re a hero in my book. I’ll admit I was very against virtual runs at the beginning of this pandemic. I mean, my goal is to run a half marathon in each state. It feels a bit like cheating running, say a Tennessee half marathon Virtually from California LOL. After much deliberation, I decided to FINALLY sign up for the DC Wonder Woman Virtual Run with the support of the Bibrave community.
I don’t know about any of you, but I may have gained the “covid 19 pounds”. And as much as I would like this pandemic to pass and resume live running events, it was definitely time to sign up for a run and hold myself accountable for my health. I respect all of those savy, “love to run for the sake of enjoying the run” folk. I am not in that category. I’m in the “love to run because I love to eat more and there’s a balance between eating a lot, running and staying healthy” haha.
CONS of a Virtual Run
As you can imagine, without a live Race event set up, the 10K run can get a little lonely. I appreciate all of the crowds on the sidelines cheering me on at live events, even if they didn’t come there to see me. So this is one of the downfalls of running Virtually.
PROS of Virtual Run
Surprisingly there are more Pro’s than I expected with the DC Wonder Woman Virtual Run. For starters, the swag is LEGIT! Like, I actually felt like a Wonder Woman with that pullover and medal (even if it did just come through the mail). It was extra special having my cute 3 year-old award me with my medal at the end of the race.
Another reason to sign up for a virtual run is everything is on your time! You train at your own pace. There are no time limits, so if it takes you a remarkably long time to complete a 10K race, that’s ok! 6.2 miles at a six-minute-mile is the same amount of completed miles as 6.2 miles at a fifteen-minute-mile, just saying. You also don’t have to worry about traveling for a destination run, or any of the other unforeseeable’s of a live event because you can complete this race out your front door. Personally, I had my golden retriever run the race with me and my friend and kiddos follow along in our side by side for support. It was definitely unique and my little kids made me feel like Wonder Woman as I ran beside them.
The DC Wonder Woman Virtual run gives you the inspiration to get up and be active!
You don’t have to be in the best shape of your life to sign up for a virtual run (I’m not for sure haha)! I still recommend using virtual runs as a tool to keep you motivated as well as a mechanism to train for future live race events. I hope that 2021 will bring more socially distanced live event races to continue our trek across the states, but until then Virtual runs it is!
Laura Orange recommends this race
(2014)
"The Las Vegas strip at night is surreal!"
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‘What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!’ Except when it comes to sharing all the deets on running the strip at night! Rock n’ Roll series is the only race that shuts down Las Vegas boulevard to put on a spectacular run to experience all the lights and magic that Sin city holds.
I made SOOOO many mistakes on this run, so I feel this Nevada run is my most informative blog. I hope that you can successfully complete your run and enjoy the night life after!
This race takes place in mid-November each year and hosts more than 40,000 runners! As naive as I am, I assumed that since the run was in the Nevada desert, it would therefore be HOT! So I came to the race in a cute tank top and little booty shorts. Well, long behold, it is (more often than I realized) cold in Las Vegas, and in November 2014 I stood outside in tiny little runner clothes while the clouds spit out snow (mistake #1). Luckily I found a long sleeve shirt.
ADVICE #1- ALWAYS CHECK THE WEATHER FORECAST BEFORE YOUR RUN! DUH, RIGHT?
Rock n’ Roll half marathon series holds true to it’s name and puts on quite a pre-run entertainment show! This year Macklemore and Ryan Lewis at the start line on Las Vegas Blvd between Harmon and Park avenue. However, before we get to the main event, you have to actually GET to the venue (mistake #2). We stayed at Caesar’s Palace (as it was closest to the finish line) which is a 1.1 mile walk to the start. I learned after the fact that there is a monorail that can get you closer to the venue. However we heard this was also quite packed full of runners, so plan ahead.
We had also planned on eating a big, carb-loaded lunch at the venue once we got there, so we passed many opportunities to eat along the way (mistake #3). Well there is NO food at the venue. so we started our half marathon at 5 pm with only eating half a bagel for the entire day!
ADVICE #2 ALWAYS PLAN YOUR MEALS AHEAD AND PRACTICE RUNNING THE TIME YOUR EVENT WILL BE HELD
Again, duh, right?! But I had never practiced running a long run at night, despite signing up for “run the strip at night”! It never occurred to me that running 13.1 miles at 5pm would be any different than running 13.1 miles at 7am (mistake #4). Well it is a LOT different depending on the time of day, so train your body accordingly.
This brings us to the start of the race, the corrals. This was my least favorite part of this grand event. Hosting 40,000 people, I’ll admit the rock n roll series does a fantastic job organizing that many runners; but that will never take away the fact you honestly feel like cattle. It took 35 minutes shuffling along, just to START the race!! The only benefit of these corrals was the warmth that they provided in the surrounding freezing weather. To be completely honest, I was already physically and mentally drained before I even started the run.
THE RUN ITSELF WAS QUITE INCREDIBLE; IT TRULY IS AMAZING TO RUN THE INFAMOUS LAS VEGAS STRIP WITH ALL THE LIGHTS, WITH YOU BEING THE MAIN ATTRACTION.
But remember the strip is only a couple miles long, the rest of the run is through residential (slightly sketchy) neighborhoods. There were many times during this long run that I was ready to quit and call a taxi back to the hotel, but I was forced to finish due to the fact that no street traffic was allowed so I couldn’t get a car and Jenn would not let me quit.
THE RUN ITSELF WAS QUITE INCREDIBLE; IT TRULY IS AMAZING TO RUN THE INFAMOUS LAS VEGAS STRIP WITH ALL THE LIGHTS, WITH YOU BEING THE MAIN ATTRACTION.
But remember the strip is only a couple miles long, the rest of the run is through residential (slightly sketchy) neighborhoods. There were many times during this long run that I was ready to quit and call a taxi back to the hotel, but I was forced to finish due to the fact that no street traffic was allowed so I couldn’t get a car and Jenn would not let me quit.
THE RUN ITSELF WAS QUITE INCREDIBLE; IT TRULY IS AMAZING TO RUN THE INFAMOUS LAS VEGAS STRIP WITH ALL THE LIGHTS, WITH YOU BEING THE MAIN ATTRACTION.
But remember the strip is only a couple miles long, the rest of the run is through residential (slightly sketchy) neighborhoods. There were many times during this long run that I was ready to quit and call a taxi back to the hotel, but I was forced to finish due to the fact that no street traffic was allowed so I couldn’t get a car and Jenn would not let me quit.
THE RUN ITSELF WAS QUITE INCREDIBLE; IT TRULY IS AMAZING TO RUN THE INFAMOUS LAS VEGAS STRIP WITH ALL THE LIGHTS, WITH YOU BEING THE MAIN ATTRACTION.
But remember the strip is only a couple miles long, the rest of the run is through residential (slightly sketchy) neighborhoods. There were many times during this long run that I was ready to quit and call a taxi back to the hotel, but I was forced to finish due to the fact that no street traffic was allowed so I couldn’t get a car and Jenn would not let me quit.
It finally came time to cross the finish line. I was overwhelmed with feeling proud that I actually accomplished this run (5 months postpartum and still breastfeeding I may add), and joy that it was FINALLY over! My legs seriously ached and all I wanted to do was to sit down, yet as we crossed the finish line there was no exit for another half mile!! (1.1 + 13.1 + .5= at least a million miles that day). We were again corralled to where we could finally exit and I nearly wanted to cry as we limped back to our hotel and crawled into bed. Needless to say, we ordered room service dinner and did not get to experience the night life of Vegas. Our husband’s joked that next morning, that was the most sober they had ever left the Las Vegas airport!
ADVISE #3 DON’T MAKE PLANS AFTER YOUR RUN
Being that this was my husband and my first trip away from our 5 month old daughter, we had planned a fun ‘grown up only’ dinner, dancing and gambling in fabulous Las Vegas. Well I was quite disappointed when I couldn’t fathom getting out of the warm bed and went straight to sleep at 8.
THE LODGING, NIGHTLIFE AND FOOD
I.e. The REAL reason we came to Vegas!! Although I did not get to experience many of these on this trip, I have a few recommendations that are definitely worth mentioning.
Lodging: Stay on the strip! There are many off the main strip, discounted hotels that are worth the savings with a quick taxi away, however I recommend actually staying on the strip- it’s worth the experience.
Nightlife: The Foundation room on top of the Mandalay Bay. A cocktail, dancing and spectacular views! This lounge was nothing short of incredible.
Food: There are SOOO many great restaurants in Las Vegas, which I will share on my next adventure. But if you make the trip, there’s one stop you cannot miss. M&M world! FYI: Running a half marathon burns at least 337 M&M’s
Overall Rock n’ Roll Half Marathon, Las Vegas is a once in a lifetime experience! And by once, I truly mean that will be the one and only time I will participate in a race that large! But hopefully you’ve learned from my mistakes and enjoy running the strip at night!
Laura Orange recommends this race
(2013)
"Redwood Beauty!"
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Avenue of the Giants was my first (and hopefully only) full marathon. To be honest, I couldn’t have asked for a better location or weather. I think fate was in place on that day, because if the conditions weren’t as perfect as they were, I don’t know if I could have finished those 26.2 grueling miles. And yes, that many miles in my experience is definitely considered grueling. I remember by mile 21 my sister and I were throwing pebbles at the beautiful redwoods, as we spitefully yelled “stupid tree! I’m here running these terrible miles and all you’re doing is growing and photosynthesizing!” Let’s just say your mind grows weary after 4+ hours of physical activity. Best advice is train for your run!
This is a double out and back run on paved roads that is covered by redwood trees providing stable shade the whole course. Since it’s an early run, the temperature was about 50 degrees Fahrenheit, but as you can see in the picture, I wore shorts and a tank top and never once remembered being cold. One of the perks of this run is how remote and beautiful the location is, but at the same time somewhat of a downfall as there is not a whole lot for lodging or food. The run is located about 5 hours from Sacramento and San Francisco.
You actually can’t miss the sights of this race, as the Humboldt Redwoods surround you as you drive to and run this course. But please take the opportunity to stop and appreciate just how BIG these redwoods are! It’s an absolute amazing experience to stand underneath a forest of trees. Most of which are over 300 ft tall and over 1000 years old! As for recommendations for food and wine, uh pack a lunch! There aren’t a whole lot of options that I even remember. But if you head up highway 101 you can find a good chocolate milkshake within 30 miles or so.
Overall recommendation: This race is for you if you’re looking for a run to appreciate nature or a pretty flat course with stable weather. This may not be the best choice if you’re looking for busy city life with lots of food choices.