Well. Yesterday, J called me from the LR Marathon / Half marathon expo and told me that if I decided to drop down to the half, I wouldn't get a finishing time and would be listed as DNF - DID NOT FINISH. See, when we signed up 6 months ago, we'd both signed up for the full. Since then, J has trained perfectly. I ... have not. I never did the 20 miler that is a rite of passage before a marathon. I never even did an 18 miler, and I'd all but quit running during the week. I can taper with the best of 'em, right? Regardless, I knew that running the half would be smarter, given my less-than-stellar training, but if I'd done that today, I'd been listed as DNF. Did not finish. That feels so uncool.
See, I'd been toying with the idea of running the full all week, but had pretty much decided that the Half would be much smarter. I never said I was all THAT intelligent.
Last night, J and I drove the full marathon course - the part we hadn't already run during half marathons in the past. And by the end of the evening, I'd pretty much decided to give the full a go. I'm not sure when, if ever, I'll have this solid of a running base. Even though the longest I went in training was 16 miles, I felt like if I ran smart, I could probably finish the damn thing. And I did do three 16 milers in training, each of which helped me know what works and what doesn't on long runs.
I never said ANYTHING about finishing fast. Finishing was all I was after.
One of the most important things I learned during my training was that I have to eat while I run. I take about 150 calories every hour, sometimes a little more than that. That is apparently enough to get me through, and it worked like a charm today. Every time I started going into negative thought land, every time I started thinking about how long I still had to go, I ate something. Apparently, my stomach and my mental status are strongly connected. Who knew?
The most interesting part of the day happened right about the first split of the marathoners and half marathoners. See, in the LR marathon, the marathoners and the half marathoners run the first 11 or so miles together. Then, there is a split, where you have to decide what you are doing. Marathoners go straight, halvers go right. As I was approaching the split, I was listening to one of my podcasts, and the topic du jour was "fear of road races."
I decided it was a sign, and it just helped reinforce the decision to go straight.
In the end, I finished at 5 hours and 7 minutes. Although it wasn't horrible, it still feels crazy to have started running at 8 this morning and finished at 7 minutes after 1 this afternoon. But I finished, and I'm totally thrilled and actually pretty damn proud. That was a long freakin' way to run, and how lucky am I to have legs strong enough to do that. Deeply satisfying.
Tomorrow, when I can't sit down, when I might go down stairs backwards, I may feel differently. Tonight, I'm just very, very satisfied.
Showing posts with label Races. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Races. Show all posts
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Notes from the Race
As I said, the race was actually really well run, well organized, and well supported. There were plenty of aid stations, more energy gels along the course than I ever expected, and they got lucky enough to have a fantastic day for a race. My time from my garmin was 2:17:35, which is a 10:26 average pace.
I had been planning to run this one with a couple of friends, so I didn't really intend to make this a "hard" race or go for time or anything. I just wanted to get a nice long run under my belt and see what the hills were like. As it turns out, though, I'm not really too good at running races "slowly." I ran with one of my friends until mile 5, where we separated (mainly because I had to stop for "over hydration", and she was able to keep going). Here are the first five miles:
Mile 1: 10:12
Mile 2: 12:02
Mile 3: 10:13
Mile 4: 10:42
Mile 5: 15:03 <------- see the break there????
Average over the first 5 miles: 11:38 (although with the 15 minute lap, it would have been closer to 10:45 average).
The second part of the race was me attempting to catch up with my friend, and the proceed to leave her behind when she had to stop for nature's call. Once I did that, I decided to give it a go and see what kind of times I would have if I ran hard.
Mile 6: 9:46
Mile 7: 9:39
Mile 8: 10:11
Mile 9: 9:14
Mile 10: 9:25
Mile 11: 10:04
Mile 12: 10:02
Mile 13: 9:06
Mile 14: 9:19 (average over .2 mi).
Average over the last miles: 9:41 pace.
I felt really good about the last half of the race. I'm going to have to figure out a better scheme for pre-race hydration (you know, like actually taking care of things before the race starts???), but I'm very happy with the last 8 miles of that run. I actually felt so good finishing this race that the idea of a marathon didn't frighten me as much as it has in the past.
Of course, I am now fighting an evil cold, but I feel less like death warmed over than I did yesterday. So I guess that's progress, right? And I'm not having too much trouble getting around (read: not very sore), so I feel like my base is strong. So yeah. Good race, good friends, good time. Same time next year?
I had been planning to run this one with a couple of friends, so I didn't really intend to make this a "hard" race or go for time or anything. I just wanted to get a nice long run under my belt and see what the hills were like. As it turns out, though, I'm not really too good at running races "slowly." I ran with one of my friends until mile 5, where we separated (mainly because I had to stop for "over hydration", and she was able to keep going). Here are the first five miles:
Mile 1: 10:12
Mile 2: 12:02
Mile 3: 10:13
Mile 4: 10:42
Mile 5: 15:03 <------- see the break there????
Average over the first 5 miles: 11:38 (although with the 15 minute lap, it would have been closer to 10:45 average).
The second part of the race was me attempting to catch up with my friend, and the proceed to leave her behind when she had to stop for nature's call. Once I did that, I decided to give it a go and see what kind of times I would have if I ran hard.
Mile 6: 9:46
Mile 7: 9:39
Mile 8: 10:11
Mile 9: 9:14
Mile 10: 9:25
Mile 11: 10:04
Mile 12: 10:02
Mile 13: 9:06
Mile 14: 9:19 (average over .2 mi).
Average over the last miles: 9:41 pace.
I felt really good about the last half of the race. I'm going to have to figure out a better scheme for pre-race hydration (you know, like actually taking care of things before the race starts???), but I'm very happy with the last 8 miles of that run. I actually felt so good finishing this race that the idea of a marathon didn't frighten me as much as it has in the past.
Of course, I am now fighting an evil cold, but I feel less like death warmed over than I did yesterday. So I guess that's progress, right? And I'm not having too much trouble getting around (read: not very sore), so I feel like my base is strong. So yeah. Good race, good friends, good time. Same time next year?
Monday, December 12, 2011
Quick Update
Fayetteville Half Marathon, in the books. My time was not stellar, but it was better than I expected. The weather was cold but really perfect - around 23 at race time, probably just over freezing as we finished, with a nice warm sun. It was a well supported race, with some amazingly beautiful scenery. My time was somewhere around 2:17 or 2:18 - certainly not the fastest, but not the slowest either.
I'll probably post a little more in detail once I get a chance, but I managed to catch a cold over the weekend and am still attempting to recover from that, as well as get all the stuff ready for this week that isn't yet ready. And really...Christmas in two weeks? Jeez. Guess I should consider making a list to check sometime soon.
I'll probably post a little more in detail once I get a chance, but I managed to catch a cold over the weekend and am still attempting to recover from that, as well as get all the stuff ready for this week that isn't yet ready. And really...Christmas in two weeks? Jeez. Guess I should consider making a list to check sometime soon.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Bulletin'
Whew, it's about to get crazy(er) around here. The next few days, somewhat randomly:
- Run like mad to get the house in order and errands taken care of today.
- Tennis and 3 miles also on the agenda.
- J is out of town, so I'm flying solo. I don't really mind this, but it does mean I have to think things through a little more than normal. See: dinner plans, reading before bed, etc.
- Get guest room ready - I have a good friend who will be staying with us Sunday night. I pick her up at the airport tomorrow morning and we go straight to Fayetteville, where we'll run the half marathon up there this weekend. So I won't have a chance to get anything else around the house done once I drop the kiddos off at school tomorrow.
- It's supposed to be in the low 20s when we start the run on Sunday morning. HOLY CRAP THAT'S COLD. I revise my former statement from saying that it's going to be just cold to saying that it's going to be ass-freezing cold. BRRRRR.
- Race goals - I don't really have one. I'll be running with other folks most likely, and I imagine we'll run a 10:30 or so pace. I need to look at the course elevation to figure out how hellish it's gonna be. Last time I remember looking at it, it seemed like there were 3 miles of uphills to 1 mile of downhill. That ought to be fun...
Monday, April 11, 2011
Hogeye Half Marathon Masochism
So I woke up yesterday morning in the hills of Fayetteville at some friends' house* with the crazy-ass notion of running the Hogeye Half Marathon. The main goal was to finish and not collapse. And that's not a forgone conclusion with any distance race: anything can happen out there, especially in a race that is promoting its route with the words "Now Less Hilly!" Yeah. Good times.
Unfortunately, the idea that a hilly half marathon might be a little masochistic didn't occur to me until 6am yesterday morning, when I woke up and could immediately tell that the day had the potential for complete and unmitigated disaster. My stomach was all sorts of messed up and my heart rate was elevated before I even got out of bed. Had I been home and planning a training run, I would've either bagged it or at least waited until I felt better later in the day. That wasn't an option yesterday morning, though. So onward I went, hoping I'd start to feel better once I got out there. At worst, I'd throw up or pass out, and get taken to the medical tent. Hey, at least I'd have a legitimate excuse for not finishing, right?
If you've been to Fayetteville, you are familiar with the hills. The run started in the historic Square, and it was by far the smallest race I've run so far. Everyone congregated en mass at a street corner near the starting line - no corrals, no seeding, just a mass of folks waiting to run. Some in kilts, some in tutus. To each his or her own, right?
It was small enough that when the National Anthem was sung just prior to the race, the entire Square got completely, eerily quiet while everyone turned towards the flag. The previous races I've run have had far too many folks to even begin to hear the anthem, let alone have everyone get quiet. It was a very nice way to start the race.
With the anthem sung, there was a "bang" and we were off. It was over 70 degrees at the start, which is nearly 40 degrees warmer than any previous half that I've run. The first two miles of the race were a few downhills from the square, and then uphill again and again and again through the U of A campus. It was pretty telling that when we hit the turnaround for the 5K runners (which happened about 1.5 miles into the course), I was already sweaty and a little jealous, wondering how the hell I was going to manage to eke out another 11.5 miles. So the first two very hilly miles shook out like this:
Mile 1: 10:06
Mile 2: 10:25
We hit mile 3, and it was nearly completely downhill.
Mile 3: 9:34.
God that felt good to go downhill! I was chugging Gatorade at every water station, wondering if I had managed to completely dehydrate myself with one glass of wine the night before. Doubtful. I've heard other runners talk about days that just weren't their days - maybe this was just mine? Or maybe I underestimated the effect of the heat, humidity and wind - I'm not sure.
Miles 4 through 9 were pretty straight forward, a few rolling hills, nothing too crazy. I was still trying to fight through whatever was bothering me, but by about mile 6, I had started to shake it off. A few caffeinated gels probably helped significantly. There was also this crazy-ass overpass near Sam's around mile 7 where we ran up and straight into the wind. It was everything I could do to keep plodding along over that bridge, being blown left and right by the 20+mph gusts.
Mile 4: 10:16
Mile 5: 10:16
Mile 6: 10:17
Mile 7: 10:13
Mile 8: 9:57
Mile 9: 10:03
If I had been thinking straight, I would've realized that I was clocking decent time because we had a tailwind. Maybe it was best I wasn't thinking straight, because any enjoyment I was managing to find would have just turned to dread.
I knew from looking at the elevation chart that the last 4 miles were a gradual incline, so I had been trying to hold a little back for that last push. Unfortunately, this was point on the course where the oh-so-helpful-and-friendly tailwind became an evil and vicious headwind. Combine that with the sadistic sun, and things started to go badly. Those conditions are ok for a quick 3 mile run, but not so much for the ass end of a 13 mile run that ends with several miles on a sometimes gradual / sometimes not so gradual incline...so not cool.
Mile 10: 10:35
Mile 11: 10:30
Mile 12: 10:59
Mile 13: 10:52
Mile 14 (.23 mile): 2.32 (11:04 pace).
Somewhere around Mile 12, I found myself getting inexplicably pissed off at whoever decided to hold the race on this particular day. What the hell were they thinking - didn't they KNOW eleven months ago that it was going to be this windy and hot today? That was when I decided to slow down just a wee bit. Delirium was setting in, and I was close enough to finishing that passing out, though it might sound nice, was no longer acceptable. I wanted to finish under my own power, not in the back of a medic van.
The last quarter mile or so was 100% uphill. Not just a gradual incline, but a significant grade. By the time I hit the finish line, my heart rate was redlining and I was DONE. I had a few moments post race where I thought I might either throw up or pass out. Fortunately for both me and my friends who made the trek out to see the finish, neither happened.
Overall thoughts on the race? I enjoyed the course - miles 8-13 were on the trails through town and were very pretty. It was also nice to run through campus on roads that would have terrified me during my college years on campus. My overall time, 2:16:40, comes out to about an average 10:20 pace, all miles under an 11:00 average. I'm not counting that last .23 average pace, 'cause that bastard was completely uphill at the end of the race. And it wasn't a complete mile. So there.
To be quite honest, I'm thrilled my time in this race. It's a solid 10 minutes slower than my LR half time, but with the weather, hills, and the way I felt that morning? That's actually a fantastic result for what I thought I could do. I placed in the top 25% in my age group (10 out of 40 is still top 25%, right?), and I feel pretty encouraged by how much my running has improved over the last few years. If a "bad" race results in a 10:20 average, maybe my dream goal of breaking a 2 hour half is reachable...guess we'll see.
*Our friends let me crash there literally with last minute notice, and it was much appreciated!
Unfortunately, the idea that a hilly half marathon might be a little masochistic didn't occur to me until 6am yesterday morning, when I woke up and could immediately tell that the day had the potential for complete and unmitigated disaster. My stomach was all sorts of messed up and my heart rate was elevated before I even got out of bed. Had I been home and planning a training run, I would've either bagged it or at least waited until I felt better later in the day. That wasn't an option yesterday morning, though. So onward I went, hoping I'd start to feel better once I got out there. At worst, I'd throw up or pass out, and get taken to the medical tent. Hey, at least I'd have a legitimate excuse for not finishing, right?
If you've been to Fayetteville, you are familiar with the hills. The run started in the historic Square, and it was by far the smallest race I've run so far. Everyone congregated en mass at a street corner near the starting line - no corrals, no seeding, just a mass of folks waiting to run. Some in kilts, some in tutus. To each his or her own, right?
It was small enough that when the National Anthem was sung just prior to the race, the entire Square got completely, eerily quiet while everyone turned towards the flag. The previous races I've run have had far too many folks to even begin to hear the anthem, let alone have everyone get quiet. It was a very nice way to start the race.
With the anthem sung, there was a "bang" and we were off. It was over 70 degrees at the start, which is nearly 40 degrees warmer than any previous half that I've run. The first two miles of the race were a few downhills from the square, and then uphill again and again and again through the U of A campus. It was pretty telling that when we hit the turnaround for the 5K runners (which happened about 1.5 miles into the course), I was already sweaty and a little jealous, wondering how the hell I was going to manage to eke out another 11.5 miles. So the first two very hilly miles shook out like this:
Mile 1: 10:06
Mile 2: 10:25
We hit mile 3, and it was nearly completely downhill.
Mile 3: 9:34.
God that felt good to go downhill! I was chugging Gatorade at every water station, wondering if I had managed to completely dehydrate myself with one glass of wine the night before. Doubtful. I've heard other runners talk about days that just weren't their days - maybe this was just mine? Or maybe I underestimated the effect of the heat, humidity and wind - I'm not sure.
Miles 4 through 9 were pretty straight forward, a few rolling hills, nothing too crazy. I was still trying to fight through whatever was bothering me, but by about mile 6, I had started to shake it off. A few caffeinated gels probably helped significantly. There was also this crazy-ass overpass near Sam's around mile 7 where we ran up and straight into the wind. It was everything I could do to keep plodding along over that bridge, being blown left and right by the 20+mph gusts.
Mile 4: 10:16
Mile 5: 10:16
Mile 6: 10:17
Mile 7: 10:13
Mile 8: 9:57
Mile 9: 10:03
If I had been thinking straight, I would've realized that I was clocking decent time because we had a tailwind. Maybe it was best I wasn't thinking straight, because any enjoyment I was managing to find would have just turned to dread.
I knew from looking at the elevation chart that the last 4 miles were a gradual incline, so I had been trying to hold a little back for that last push. Unfortunately, this was point on the course where the oh-so-helpful-and-friendly tailwind became an evil and vicious headwind. Combine that with the sadistic sun, and things started to go badly. Those conditions are ok for a quick 3 mile run, but not so much for the ass end of a 13 mile run that ends with several miles on a sometimes gradual / sometimes not so gradual incline...so not cool.
Mile 10: 10:35
Mile 11: 10:30
Mile 12: 10:59
Mile 13: 10:52
Mile 14 (.23 mile): 2.32 (11:04 pace).
Somewhere around Mile 12, I found myself getting inexplicably pissed off at whoever decided to hold the race on this particular day. What the hell were they thinking - didn't they KNOW eleven months ago that it was going to be this windy and hot today? That was when I decided to slow down just a wee bit. Delirium was setting in, and I was close enough to finishing that passing out, though it might sound nice, was no longer acceptable. I wanted to finish under my own power, not in the back of a medic van.
The last quarter mile or so was 100% uphill. Not just a gradual incline, but a significant grade. By the time I hit the finish line, my heart rate was redlining and I was DONE. I had a few moments post race where I thought I might either throw up or pass out. Fortunately for both me and my friends who made the trek out to see the finish, neither happened.
Overall thoughts on the race? I enjoyed the course - miles 8-13 were on the trails through town and were very pretty. It was also nice to run through campus on roads that would have terrified me during my college years on campus. My overall time, 2:16:40, comes out to about an average 10:20 pace, all miles under an 11:00 average. I'm not counting that last .23 average pace, 'cause that bastard was completely uphill at the end of the race. And it wasn't a complete mile. So there.
To be quite honest, I'm thrilled my time in this race. It's a solid 10 minutes slower than my LR half time, but with the weather, hills, and the way I felt that morning? That's actually a fantastic result for what I thought I could do. I placed in the top 25% in my age group (10 out of 40 is still top 25%, right?), and I feel pretty encouraged by how much my running has improved over the last few years. If a "bad" race results in a 10:20 average, maybe my dream goal of breaking a 2 hour half is reachable...guess we'll see.
*Our friends let me crash there literally with last minute notice, and it was much appreciated!
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Down and Dirty (Or Windy and Hilly?)
HOLY CRAP.
Race report coming later today (if I get time), but here are a few quick thoughts on the Fayetteville Hogeye Half.
A) It was windy.
B) There was lots of wind.
C) Did I mention the 20 MPH wind?
D) And the hills?
E) And the heat?
F) And the wind?
Short story: 2:16:40, or an average pace of 10:20. Overall? I'm fine with that. It comes in third of my four halves in terms of speed, but first in terms of obstacles. Not sure what was up with my fitness today, but something was off from the time I woke up this morning.
More later, assuming I can stay awake. That's a big assumption at this point...
Race report coming later today (if I get time), but here are a few quick thoughts on the Fayetteville Hogeye Half.
A) It was windy.
B) There was lots of wind.
C) Did I mention the 20 MPH wind?
D) And the hills?
E) And the heat?
F) And the wind?
Short story: 2:16:40, or an average pace of 10:20. Overall? I'm fine with that. It comes in third of my four halves in terms of speed, but first in terms of obstacles. Not sure what was up with my fitness today, but something was off from the time I woke up this morning.
More later, assuming I can stay awake. That's a big assumption at this point...
Sunday, March 6, 2011
LR Half Marathon 2011: Race Report
Alternate Title: Masochism in the Cold
OK, so it wasn't that bad. It was above freezing, right? (37 degrees at start time...). The short: around 2:06, or a 9:40 pace. The long: see below. Really, this is so I'll remember it more than anything else.
J and I layered up and hit the course this morning about 7:45; the race started at 8:00. That's one of the best things about races in cities you know - the logistics are incredibly easy. Running one in your town is also a plus, because the bed you are dragging your ass out of at 6:30 a.m. on a Sunday morning is your own.
Over the last few days, I've been trying to figure out how to run this one. I'm certainly in no danger of being overtrained, but I'm not in bad shape. I've done some decent running lately, and my speed has gotten better. Plus, a good friend PR'd a half yesterday (PR = personal record) in under 2 hours. Now, that is literally a dream time for me, but what was wrong with giving this one a full out effort?
I've run two previous half marathons: the first one I just sort of enjoyed the experience (Las Vegas Rock 'n Roll, 2:11:10); the second one (LR last year, 2:29:29, 11:25 pace) I was injured and just happy to be running. This year I'm not injured (THANK GOD), and I've got some experience with half marathons, so why not run this one with a solid effort and leave everything on the course?
The first goal is always just to finish - this is never a guarantee, 13 miles is always a long way to run. I set my "wouldn't it be nice if" goal at about a 10:00 mile pace, which would get me about a 2:10:00 finish time. My dream goal was to get under 2 hours. Not bloody likely today, but it was something to shoot for.
I had one very helpful element with the run today: at the starting line, J (whose pace for a leisurely jog is my hard effort pace) decided to run with me instead of running his normal pace. Usually I'm far too slow for him, but maybe my rumblings about trying to run "faster" convinced him to run with me for a while to see if he could handle the slower pace. So he ran with me for nearly the entire race. I'm fairly certain I would never have gone out as fast as we did initially, which led to me keeping up a fast pace the entire race.
For the first few miles, I kept up a decent string of sub 10:00 miles, despite all the weaving we had to do to get around the slower runners / walkers. I began to think I could maybe meet my 2:10 goal, and perhaps even do better... There was a damn good chance that I'd end up running the first half of the race way too fast and blow up in the second half, but I'd never know if I didn't try, so I kept the pace up.
Mile 1: 10:05
Mile 2: 9:43
Mile 3: 9:40
Mile 4: 9:34
Mile 5: 9:48
Mile 6: 9:38
Somewhere around mile 6 I realized that I was definitely running sub 10 miles, and was still holding a decent pace without dying. This is always a good thing - dying on the course is generally not recommended. I walked through most of the drink stations, going with Gatorade when I could.
Miles 7-10 are a bit of a blur. I remember stopping for water, and I remember fumbling with my ipod to keep queuing up loud obnoxious songs to keep me moving. Every time I looked at my Garmin and it told me I was nearing a 10:00 pace, I sped up. I didn't have to do that very much, though; it was far more often that I saw a 9:XX pace rather than a 10:XX pace.
Mile 7: 9:31
Mile 8: 9:34
Mile 9: 9:18
Mile 10: 9:25
Somewhere in the middle of these miles, we made the big run uphill towards the state capitol. I hit a loud, obnoxious song, zoned out, kicked into another gear, and J started asking me if I was ok - I think he was concerned about having to carry me once my legs shut down. Because THAT was definitely going to happen at some point, it was just a matter of whether I'd be able to cross the finish line before the shut down occurred.
Miles 11-13 are where I'd have to say I quit having fun. Plain and simple, those miles hurt. And they should have - they were the fasted damn miles of the run. J was fantastic with lots of encouragement, but towards the end I really wanted to kill him. No offense, J, but you were KILLING me at the end with that pace.
Mile 11: 9:16
Mile 12: 9:17
Mile 13: 9:09
Last .3 tenths: 9:05 pace
So, the final result? My chip time was about 2:06, or a 9:40 average pace. That's not quite a 5 minute PR, but it's close, and a hell of a lot better than I expected from today.
I'm absolutely flabbergasted that I was able to hold that pace over 13 miles, and even sped up at the end. Don't get me wrong - I AM DONE, and I left everything out there on the course today. But that gives me hope for my "dream goal" of a sub 2 hour half. The Hogeye Half in Fayetteville is in a month, and I'm seriously considering giving that one a try. I don't really think I'll be able to shave 6 minutes off in a month (that's nearly 30 seconds a mile), but it might be a good way to keep my ass in training when I might otherwise get lazy.
Funny what a little success will do for you, right?
OK, so it wasn't that bad. It was above freezing, right? (37 degrees at start time...). The short: around 2:06, or a 9:40 pace. The long: see below. Really, this is so I'll remember it more than anything else.
J and I layered up and hit the course this morning about 7:45; the race started at 8:00. That's one of the best things about races in cities you know - the logistics are incredibly easy. Running one in your town is also a plus, because the bed you are dragging your ass out of at 6:30 a.m. on a Sunday morning is your own.
Over the last few days, I've been trying to figure out how to run this one. I'm certainly in no danger of being overtrained, but I'm not in bad shape. I've done some decent running lately, and my speed has gotten better. Plus, a good friend PR'd a half yesterday (PR = personal record) in under 2 hours. Now, that is literally a dream time for me, but what was wrong with giving this one a full out effort?
I've run two previous half marathons: the first one I just sort of enjoyed the experience (Las Vegas Rock 'n Roll, 2:11:10); the second one (LR last year, 2:29:29, 11:25 pace) I was injured and just happy to be running. This year I'm not injured (THANK GOD), and I've got some experience with half marathons, so why not run this one with a solid effort and leave everything on the course?
The first goal is always just to finish - this is never a guarantee, 13 miles is always a long way to run. I set my "wouldn't it be nice if" goal at about a 10:00 mile pace, which would get me about a 2:10:00 finish time. My dream goal was to get under 2 hours. Not bloody likely today, but it was something to shoot for.
I had one very helpful element with the run today: at the starting line, J (whose pace for a leisurely jog is my hard effort pace) decided to run with me instead of running his normal pace. Usually I'm far too slow for him, but maybe my rumblings about trying to run "faster" convinced him to run with me for a while to see if he could handle the slower pace. So he ran with me for nearly the entire race. I'm fairly certain I would never have gone out as fast as we did initially, which led to me keeping up a fast pace the entire race.
For the first few miles, I kept up a decent string of sub 10:00 miles, despite all the weaving we had to do to get around the slower runners / walkers. I began to think I could maybe meet my 2:10 goal, and perhaps even do better... There was a damn good chance that I'd end up running the first half of the race way too fast and blow up in the second half, but I'd never know if I didn't try, so I kept the pace up.
Mile 1: 10:05
Mile 2: 9:43
Mile 3: 9:40
Mile 4: 9:34
Mile 5: 9:48
Mile 6: 9:38
Somewhere around mile 6 I realized that I was definitely running sub 10 miles, and was still holding a decent pace without dying. This is always a good thing - dying on the course is generally not recommended. I walked through most of the drink stations, going with Gatorade when I could.
Miles 7-10 are a bit of a blur. I remember stopping for water, and I remember fumbling with my ipod to keep queuing up loud obnoxious songs to keep me moving. Every time I looked at my Garmin and it told me I was nearing a 10:00 pace, I sped up. I didn't have to do that very much, though; it was far more often that I saw a 9:XX pace rather than a 10:XX pace.
Mile 7: 9:31
Mile 8: 9:34
Mile 9: 9:18
Mile 10: 9:25
Somewhere in the middle of these miles, we made the big run uphill towards the state capitol. I hit a loud, obnoxious song, zoned out, kicked into another gear, and J started asking me if I was ok - I think he was concerned about having to carry me once my legs shut down. Because THAT was definitely going to happen at some point, it was just a matter of whether I'd be able to cross the finish line before the shut down occurred.
Miles 11-13 are where I'd have to say I quit having fun. Plain and simple, those miles hurt. And they should have - they were the fasted damn miles of the run. J was fantastic with lots of encouragement, but towards the end I really wanted to kill him. No offense, J, but you were KILLING me at the end with that pace.
Mile 11: 9:16
Mile 12: 9:17
Mile 13: 9:09
Last .3 tenths: 9:05 pace
So, the final result? My chip time was about 2:06, or a 9:40 average pace. That's not quite a 5 minute PR, but it's close, and a hell of a lot better than I expected from today.
I'm absolutely flabbergasted that I was able to hold that pace over 13 miles, and even sped up at the end. Don't get me wrong - I AM DONE, and I left everything out there on the course today. But that gives me hope for my "dream goal" of a sub 2 hour half. The Hogeye Half in Fayetteville is in a month, and I'm seriously considering giving that one a try. I don't really think I'll be able to shave 6 minutes off in a month (that's nearly 30 seconds a mile), but it might be a good way to keep my ass in training when I might otherwise get lazy.
Funny what a little success will do for you, right?
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