Tuesdays are normally my race recap post but since I didn’t race last weekend I don’t have anything to recap.  I do however; have a long run adventure in Princeton to recap.

Last week Meghan and Greta asked if I wanted to come do a long run with them in Princeton.  Princeton is only 45 minutes from me so I agreed.  (Living in a small state is really nice). I wasn’t sure what I was getting myself into but I knew it would be a great change of scenery.  The plan was to run 16 miles at roughly a 7:50 pace.  Since I don’t normally run training runs remotely close to that pace (8:30 being my long run go to) I was terribly nervous.  I knew I could race at that pace but holding a long run at that pace made me entirely too nervous.

With that I decided to get out of my comfort zone.  After getting lost in downtown Princeton, I made it to the parking lot and we started the run.  Little did I know I had already set myself up for a bad time.

The first few miles were icy and we hit some major hills.  I’m actually glad I didn’t know how hilly Princeton was because I didn’t need to be anymore nervous then I already was.  I get really nervous running with people and worry I’m holding them back (because I am very flexible and easy going with pace).

I was really excited with how quickly the run went and how easy the pace felt.  I didn’t feel like I was going into cardiac arrest and I’m really (really) glad that I decided to push out of my comfort zone and go up there.

This post actually isn’t about the run itself.  Long story short, I broke out of my comfort zone and was able to hold a pace I didn’t think would be possible.  I should focus on doing that more often.

This post is about after arriving to my car 16.5 miles later, I realized I had locked my keys in my car.  For those of you who don’t know, I drive an adorable 2000 Pontiac Firebird.  Some refer to it as a space ship with the longest windshield and doors they have ever seen.  Others just refer to my car as Lorraine since that is what I named her in high school.  (It’s hard to believe Lorraine is 14 years old and I’ve had her since 2007!)

Here is my car.

With that I stood outside wet from sweat in the 20 degree weather.  One of the most miserable things post run is frozen sweat to your body. I was so lucky Greta was with me and offered me dry clothing in her car.  If that isn’t true Oiselle team love…well I don’t know what is.

After calling Princeton campus safety and realizing that was a poor idea, Meghan came up with the idea of (duh) to call Triple A.  After being on hold for 20 minutes they said they would be out in 75 minutes.  This gave us the perfect amount of time for eating and chatting post run.

This ordeal took too long so we weren’t able to eat at the original restaurant and just went to Panera.  After the restaurant being overly crowded we finished our meal and triple A came.  Giving a shoutout to triple A, they came in roughly one hour which is a lot faster than usual.  When they say 75 minutes, I usually assume 100 minutes or more.  (That must just be a Hampton Roads thing…)

After any run all I want to do is eat and relax in warm clothing.  I don’t want to fooling around with a locked car nor do I want to sitting in a crowded restaurant with screaming high schoolers.  Oh well, it was completely my fault.  Of course when triple A came Meghan snapped a few photos labeling them “#Hollieproblems on twitter.  I got a great lol out of it but I’m not sure the triple A lady did.  She was friendly though and I was grateful she was able to easily pop open my door.  (luckily I don’t have automatic locks…that would be a pain).

I keep it classy. I thought it was just better to laugh about my issues now versus laughing a year from now….Let’s face it I will probably have forgotten in a year.

So lesson learned…pay more attention.  I know being scatterbrained has always been a big weakness of mine and this was just another example of it.  This all could have been avoided if I had brought my A game.  We all make mistakes though and I was grateful to have two new friends to run and then stay with me.  I didn’t let it stress me out or ruin my day.

These are just issues I face daily and that’s why I have enough content for a blog…but really.

Finally, please don’t forget to vote #lolzfornapa!

Questions for you:

Have you ever locked your keys in your car?

The other time I locked my keys in my car was in downtown Washington DC at a gas station…that is a lol for another day.

What is one thing you like to do post long run?