Our Time at The Miss America Pageant and Their Time at Disney World!

 

This year the Miss America pageant is back in Atlantic City again!  I can’t help but wonder if they brought it back to the Coast in an effort to help boost the economy since hurricane Sandy’s visit last fall.   ( I wondered if that is the same reason that the Super Bowl will be held in NJ/NY this year)

My sister and I had the opportunity to sit in the audience of the Miss America Pageant when it was previously held in Atlantic City.  The competition was held inside Boardwalk Hall.  Although the venue looks all glitzy and glamorous on TV, I assure you, it is not that way in person.  I was shocked when we walked in to Boardwalk Hall and the atmosphere was like a ware house!

Here is a zoomed out picture so you can see the whole area.

 

Regardless of what “our end” looked like, it was amazing getting to watch something “in person” that we’ve only ever got to watch on television.

 It’s so great that the pageant is coming back to NJ. The pageant began back in the 1920”s in Atlantic City. It was always held the week after Labor Day in an effort to extended the tourist season and build more revenue for the city.  2004 was the last time the pageant was held here. It has since moved to Las Vegas and instead of holding it in September, it was held in January.

The preliminary competitions start tonight ( Sept 10) and continue through Sept 12.  The final competition ( the one we see on TV) will be held September 15.  The “show us Your Shoes” parade, hosted by the Bachelor’s Chris Harrison and Good Morning America’s Lara Spencer will be held on Saturday September 14 at 5:00pm on the Atlantic City Boardwalk. 

We had so much fun in Atlantic City for the April Fools race this year, I wish we were going back for the pageant festivities, but we have something just as exciting already planned for this weekend!

Photo from Disney Parks blog

Speaking of exciting…. Did you see that the lovely Miss America contestants got to spend some time in Disney World last month? 

Have you ever been to Atlantic City?

Have you ever been to a live taping of something shown on TV?

My Beach Work Out with Kim Lyons ( former Biggest Loser trainer)

I had the opportunity to go out to California to take a boot camp class with Kim Lyons. Many of you may not know her, but if you were a fan of the Biggest Loser in the first few seasons, she was one of the trainers. She was the trainer for the “Red Team.” She is a personal trainer and also a former body builder.

 

Me and Kim Lyons

 

She was doing a boot camp class opened to the public in Santa Monica Beach. I found this out by reading an insert about it in OK magazine. You know you read about events that are going on in magazines but never actually get to attend. Well this was something I was going to do. During this time she was promoting her first book “Your Body, Your Life.” The advertisement even said the first hundred participants that arrived received a copy of her book that she would sign.

 

My friend and I arrived at the beach early to make sure we had a chance of getting the book. While we were waiting, my friend noticed Kim, and made sure that I went over to say Hi. Being so star struck, I couldn’t believe she was standing right across from me. I remember saying we were so excited to be there to see her. She was so down to earth and friendly and said "I hope we get a good turn out today." I’m thinking to myself…hello you’re Kim Lyons why wouldn’t you!? Other celebrities that were there included Harley Pasternak, and Brooke Burke.

 

It’s amazing how good of a workout you can really get by just using your body weight. We did a lot of squats and lunges. We even had to run to the ocean and back to our spot on the beach, which ended up being further than what it looked. Kim Lyon’s husband(Gunter Schlierkamp) was even on the stage with her trying to follow her boot camp moves. He is (was) a professional body builder and I remember her saying "Honey, I didn’t know you were so uncoordinated". She looked so small compared to her husband on stage.

 

 

In addition to the boot camp, there were nutritional and fitness seminars taking place that had great giveaways. I remember I received a yoga mat and water bottle, along with some healthy snacks.

 

 

This was definitely an experience I will never forget. I had a great work out on beautiful Santa Monica Beach meeting Kim Lyons and was lucky enough to receive her book that she signed for me. Not only did I get to meet Kim, the following week I saw my picture in the OK magazine.

( funny side note: I never even told my sister about being in the magazine but just randomly she picked it up at work one day and was browsing through it. She called me and said "Hey, is your picture in OK magazine?")

 

Do you think you can pick me out?

 

 

I have Kim's book several times. It’s for all fitness levels, whether you are just starting out on a new healthy lifestyle, or just need some motivation you will find many useful information in the book, including workout plans and healthy recipes.

 

 

 

 

Have you ever done a work out on the beach?

Race Day VIP at VA Beach and Third Eye Blind Concert

Just because the race was over does not mean the festivities ended!  If you did not read Part 1 ( Race Expo) you can read it here.  Click Here, if you did not read Part 2 the race Day Recap.

Since we were invited to be VIP's for the weekend, we got to experience more post race fun! Once my mom and sister and I were all reunited, we made our way over to RockFish Grill which was just beyond the finish line.

 Our VIP bag check was just outside the restaurant so that made it easy for us to get our bags. We didn't have to go look for those trucks!

 Even though it was nice to be in the air conditioning for a moment, we did opt to sit out on the patio.  RockFish does a nice job setting the food up in a buffet style. The options were the same as last year, salads, sandwiches, cookies, chips, fruit, juices, mimosos and other various beverages. When I stopped at Rockfish earlier to use the restroom, I noticed that they did have eggs, potatoes and more breakfast items out.

After brunch and some celebratory pictures on the beach, we went home and relaxed until the festivities started up later that evening.

The Rock n Roll Half Marathon is held in conjunction with the American Music Festival.  The festival hosts over 30 bands over a three day period on a stage along the ocean front.

On Friday night the main stage acts were Fuel and Daughtry.
Saturday  the main acts were Smash Mouth and Bare Naked Ladies ( there were other smaller bands, but we forget who they were...sorry)



Meranda and Lacey at the Ocean Front Concert on Friday night.

On Sunday, we were invite to the VIP post race party. The tent was set up right behind the main stage. Once inside it was all you can eat food, beverages, and dessert.  It started to rain while we were in the tent, so we didn't go out to watch the opening bands nor the awards ceremony, but they did have TV screens set up in the tent, so we got to watch it in there.  

By the time the headliner act was scheduled to come on, the rain had cleared up.  Everyone that was invited to the VIP tent had a special roped off area up in front of the stage.  We had a great view for Third Eye Blind.

After the concert, the weekend really went out with a bang with a fireworks show on the beach!

We don't claim to be great photographers, but we were just impressed that we were able to take a picture of the fireworks that actually turned out!

It is always such a great weekend at Rock N Roll Virginia Beach whether you are a runner or just a spectator.   I have a feeling we will have to make a decision next year whether or not to participate in RnR VA Beach again or do Disneyland.  Too bad both races are the same weekend!

Thanks for reading!


Have you ever had to decide between two great races that are held the same weekend?
What did you use as your deciding factors?

Rock n Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon Race Day Recap

Race day has finally come!  If you missed Expo day, you can read about it Here.

This was the second year Lacey has participated in the Rock n Roll Half Marathon at Virginia Beach but the first time for mom and Meranda.

 

 

Since our mom was participating in the relay portion of the half marathon, she had to get on a shuttle bus that would take her to the relay point.  We were invited to be VIP’s for this weekend’s race events, so my sister and I took advantage of the VIP lounge while we waited to get in to our corrals.  The lounge was set up inside the VA Beach Convention Center.   This was a nice place to comfortably relax before the start of the race.  They had a full breakfast prepared for us as well as a beverage station. VIP bag check was right there which was nice, and we got to use real bathrooms, not port o potties.  They also had a Rock n Roll background set up so we could take some pre-race photos. We even met some other bloggers at our table while we waited.

 

We each got in to our respective corrals. I believe there were about 20 corrals. Lacey was placed in corral 2 and the relay runners could place themselves in any corral they wanted, so Meranda placed herself in corral 8. I bet there was only a minute between each corral because they all took off so quickly.

When the race started I (Lacey) was doing well, and was right on my goal time, but soon it would slowly fade away. I came to the realization that I wasn't going to finish in the time I would have liked. I think that was my first problem. Once I knew that I wouldn't make the time, I thought well it doesn't matter now I'll just take it easy. I guess that was the wrong mind set. I should have still tried my hardest. I know I didn't push myself to my full potential. The heat may have had something to do with my performance, but I can't use that as an excuse, because last year it was more humid and I did much better.

I ( Meranda) on the other hand  had no expectations!  I was doing the relay with my mom. We had been spectators at the race last year but we didn’t know what to expect as far as running.  I was doing 7.9 miles of the race.  According to the rules, you were to hold the relay stick ( which was a drum stick) and pass that stick off to your partner at the relay point. I was so nervous about running with this stick. I normally don’t run while carrying object so I wasn’t looking forward to running with this pointed object in the midst of a crowd! It turns out that I guess you didn’t really need to have the stick after all because most of the relay teams didn’t run with theirs.

 I was feeling pretty good the entire way. I didn’t realize this until mile 7, but I was in front of the 2:15 pacer the entire time.  Somewhere after mile 7 they passed me! But that still made me feel good to know that I was doing that well. I really don’t think I could have kept up that pace for the entire 13.1 miles, but it gives me a goal to work towards now!  I hollered to my mom when I reached the relay point.  I made it to the relay point quicker than I told her I would so I don’t think she was expecting me so soon.  She took the relay stick and she was off for the last leg of the race while I got a water and my medal.  Of course I forgot to stop my Garmin when I crossed, so I didn’t know exactly what my time was for my portion of the race.  I had to walk about a mile to get to the shuttle bus that would take us to the finish line. I was hoping that I would get to the finish line in time to see my mom and sister cross.  We waited, and waited, and waited for the bus to become full and I slowly realized that I would miss them finish.  While on the bus a fellow runner was telling me that a guy had gone down at mile 1 and that the medics were giving him chest compressions. I saw a girl go down at mile 7 as well. We were hoping that these individuals were ok. We later found out that the guy at mile one died of cardiac arrest. This was so sad to hear.

I finally made it to the Ocean front ( where the finish line was) and as I was walking towards the finish line I ran into my sister.  We then found our mom who we both had missed crossing the finish line.

So our official race times were : Lacey a little disappointed about her finish time of exactly 2 hours.

Meranda and Mom excited about their finish time of 2:22.

 

We loved the medals and tech shirts this year!  The medals are glittery Starfish. Perfect for a race at the beach!

 

Have you ever been either overly disappointed in one of your race times or overly surprised by your time?

 

Don't forget to enter the give away for the Free Sweaty Band if you haven't already!  Click Here to enter.

 

Sweaty Bands and a Give Away!

I have tried many headbands in the past during my runs, only to find them around my wrist half way through because they never stay put on my head, until I found sweaty bands. I always get many compliments when I wear these headbands. They are very fashionable, and come in many patterns. But the best thing about these headbands is that they truly do not slip! They keep the fly-aways back and sweat not dripping down your face. Every expo I attend, I purchase the featured sweaty band for that marathon to wear during the race. When I had the opportunity to run my first Boston Marathon, I knew I had to get a sweaty band that said Boston on it.

Some of the Sweaty Bands I have bought at various expos

 

In addition to Boston, I was planning on running the Big Sur Marathon to complete the Boston2BigSur Challenge- 2 marathons, 2 coasts, in 13 days! After everything that had happened in Boston, Big Sur really showed their support for Boston. With many booths at the expo selling shirts and other memorabilia with proceeds going toward the Boston One Fund. The Sweaty Band Booth was no exception. In addition to the Boston Sweaty Bands they were selling in Boston, they made several other styles and colors to choose from to support the One Fund as well. Being at Boston, I wanted to show my support and buy a sweaty band to wear during my Big Sur Marathon. The ladies working the booth were very friendly. I was wearing my Boston Jacket and decided to buy the blue and yellow sweaty band that matched my jacket that said Boston Strong. The ladies even wanted to take a picture to put on their website.

Sweaty Bands booth at Big Sur

 

 

Since I am a huge fan of the Sweaty Bands, I even bought my sister one. She had never tried the sweaty band before, and wasn't sure if she would like it. She didn't think it would make a big difference, since she had tried many headbands before and had to resort to child's ones in the past. But after going for a run with it on, she could not say enough good things about it. I'm glad that I purchased one for her and now she can tell others about such a great product. We are fans of the sweaty bands!

Sweaty Bands booth at Virginia Beach

 

If you are a fan of the Sweaty Band or would like to try it for the first time, you are in luck!  Sweaty Bands has agreed to give one lucky reader a FREE sweaty band!

 

Just enter using the rafflecopter below. This raffle will run from Thursday Sept 5 through Wednesday Sept 11 @ 11:59 pm.  At this time Sweaty bands is asking that only US residents enter. ( this is for shipping purposes and I hope you all understand).  Good Luck!

 

 

Rock n Roll Virginia Beach : Health and Fitness Expo

A great way to start off any race weekend is a stop at the Health and Fitness expo!  The Rock n Roll Race expo was held at the Virginia Beach Convention Center.  This race was sponsored by Brooks and they really did a great job with the expo. It was one of the most fun and interactive expos we’ve been to.

We started by picking up our race credentials.

 

 Brooks had a part of the expo called “Run Happy Island”.  This was really fun.  When you entered you signed up for a “race passport” and took it to different booths to win prizes. 

 

 

Various prizes included T-shirts, hats, key chains, visors, and even some Brooks running shoes!  Unfortunately neither of us won a pair of shoes, but here are the fun prizes we did win!  ( Although a bit goofy, that visor did come in handy at the beach the next day)

This is the market where you won your prizes.

 

Participants got to “ride” the Brooks shoe ( which was similar to riding the mechanical bull). That thing was pretty wicked but I stayed on!

 

This next activity was really fun. You raced against others by running on this mat. The faster you ran, the more the little guy moved up the mountain. The first person to get their guy to the top of the mountain won a prize.  I ran against my mom and sister!  ( This is obviously not us in the picture!)

 

We then spent time at the various vendors here. We visited some old favorites and also found some new favorites! I talked to the rep for The Stick and he showed me some new techniques to use. I also saw my picture at the Big Sur booth as they played a slide show of this year’s race!

 

We were sad to see that the RunDisney booth was not here this year. That booth is always a favorite! One year ago on this day, at this expo, is where I signed up for my first  Disney Marathon!

 

What booth do you most look forward to seeing at a race expo?

We will be looking forward to hearing your reply because one of the vendors that were at this expo will be doing a give away on our blog tomorrow!

 

 

 

 

Race Recovery Day!

Happy September!  We've had a very busy race weekend! I think most of our friends did too!

We haven't been as social as we would have liked, but we did make an attempt to post on Facebook and Twitter!

We have a lot to blog about this week and have a great give away coming up!

Here is just a preview of our weekend.

We still have some celebrating left to do today.  We hope to find some time today to relax and soothe our sore muscles as well!  Everyone stay safe ( travel safe if you are flying or driving) and Happy Labor Day!

~M and L