Short & Sweet San Antonio Rock & Roll Half Marathon Recap:

Dean and me standing upright between calf cramps.

Hot: Broke heat record for Nov. 17^th set back in 1906. High of 89 and I’d venture to say 75+ at the start (even the always-cold me checked my gear bag in early and didn’t shiver a bit in my short top).

Humid: It’s not the heat, it’s the humidity. True!  Must have been at least 80 percent; needed an umbrella to shield off some of the “perspiration by proxy” I was getting from the guys just ahead of me.

Hills: They changed the course this year and a series of unexpected hills shook my confidence around miles 4 through 6. I might have taken them on better if I had a pair of these cowboy boot socks! Need these for next year!

I SO need these socks!

Hellish cramps: I started to feel some hamstring tingling around mile 12 and held off a meet-and-greet with the asphalt until about 15 minutes post-race. Then I made a spectacle of myself with a gnarly calf cramp. However, the husband had it much worse, with cramping starting at mile 10 and lasting up until the headline act. Felt bad for him, but not bad enough to pass up my free beer (hey, I went got his for him too)!

Held-on: Despite numerous “escape” plans obsessing my thoughts in the first six miles, I didn’t quit the race and held on to finish 7^th place overall among the females (and there were nearly 9,000 ladies that finished this half-marathon)! Most folks’ race times were not jaw-dropping (I was a bit disappointed in mine), but I’m sure that the saboteur was the weather and not a weakness for San Antonio margaritas (Actually, now I wish I would have had a margarita at the Beef Team pre-race dinner – the salt would have helped prevent dehydration).

Yeah, I’m at mile 11 and am still alive!

So, accompanying me on the trip to San Antonio was the new Dashing Bag that Fitmark Bags sent me to test out. I had a hard time choosing which bag to review, Fitmark has so many really high-quality, practical products including duffels, totes, backpacks and meal management systems (hello, I NEED one of these meal management systems). Anyway, the Dashing Bag called to me because of its versatile good looks – really, you could use this gym bag as a nice purse. Plus, I sort of thought the sculptured leather handles and pleated front made this bag look like a cute woman’s workout top (am I weird, do I see strange things? Just wait ‘till you hear the results of my ink blotter test).

Dashing Bag comes in PINK, too!

I must say, the Dashing Bag sports tote makes its hashtag #nicebag seem like an understatement. I think it should be more like #awesomebag #organiZINGbag #better-than-a-berkin-bag or #insanely-chic-yet-sensible-bag. In the last 10 days, I’ve taken this bag all over the place. I toted it as airline carry-on for my trip to the Pillsbury Bake-Off and it was even stylish enough to use as a purse in the casino and restaurants at the Aria Resort where I stayed. The bag has also been to the gym a number of times and also on this past weekend’s trip to San Antonio.

For as much stuff as it will hold, the bag is not really that big and bulky. Not only does it have real leather accents and quality hardware, the inside is lined in bright pink – I love that pop of color when I look inside. There are two main zippered cargo areas and a very convenient pocket area that automatically closes with a magnetic fastener. I can’t even begin to describe all the pouches and smaller pockets for stuff – there is literally a place for everything, including special interior pocket for your water bottle that will absorb condensation. And, a generously-sized pink drawstring bag is included to carry sweaty clothes and stinky shoes home.

Pockets and pouches galore! #nicebag

Go check out Fitmark Bags, they have stuff for both women and men that cover a wide range of sports and needs. Plus, if you purchase something, enter the discount code “FIT” to get 15% off!

Fitmark is also hosting a special giveaway where you could win one of their Meal Management Systems – I haven’t tried this product yet, but think these top-of-the-line lunch boxes look incredibly cool and practical – and make it so easy to eat clean on the go!  I’ve got one on my Christmas list!

Click through photo for entry form.