Well, a little late is better than never... right?
Despite allerigies, a head and chest cold and a dip in my training I had what I'd call a fantastic run on my first 1/2 marathon, Labor Day - Monday, 4 Sep 06. My official time was 1:56:44 which relates to an average 8:54/mi pace.
I went into this run just wanting to relax, enjoy the race and to run the best I can. By the best I can I mean as fast as I can but also well. And by well I mean strong and steady. I think I was able to relax and enjoy it because my expectations had been lowered by my lack of training and because I was well rested, I felt fresh and ready to run.
After a good nights sleep I woke up feeling good. I proceeded to get dressed, grab all my gear (garmin, hat, Sudafed, 2 GUs (though I only ended up using one), etc…) and tape off my nipples (if you've read any number of my other posts you'll know why). I wasn't able to find the small round band aids that have been so highly recommended so I decided to try out using athletic tape. I used scissors to cut small dime-sized circles out of the tape and then carefully applied them trying to avoid involving any more hair than absolutely necessary. The idea seemed pretty sound so of course I never actually tested it out before hand. And fortunately for me it worked perfect, just as expected!
Sometimes it seems that no matter how much effort you put into leaving on time that it just doesn't work out that way. As we drove towards downtown we had the pleasure of seeing numerous hot air balloons lifting up from downtown in front of Pikes Peak for the balloon classic that was in town. It was pretty neat and the kids loved it. It became more evident how little time I ended up having once we actual got close to the park where the race was to start and were told to do a u-turn and go back a few blocks to park. As we headed back numerous runners were running across the bridge and I remember thinking that it looks like everyone’s getting all warmed up. It wasn't until we were parked (which worked out pretty well as we found a spot right away) that I realized that they probably weren’t warming up, but actually trying to get to the starting line on time.
I quickly acquired GPS, strapped on my heart rate monitor, pinned on my bib (lower this time than in my race through Garden of the Gods), grabbed my GUs and headed off running towards the starting line. As I ran across the bridge and down through the park I started to realize that not only was I probably not going to get a chance to stretch but that I might actually be late. As I followed another runner who was also trying to figure out where the starting line was he looked back and asked me where I got my number... I felt bad telling him that I got my number days prior and that he would probably need to head back to some tents we already passed to get his.
Finally I saw a familiar face and asked where the starting line was, he directed me to the other side of the park and as I continued to head that way I heard a gun go off, tons of people were cheering and a huge group of people starting to run towards me. I continued to pass the crowd of runners going the opposite way, resisting the urge to just jump into the crowd until I finally found the starting line. By that time all runners were gone and the spectators were all walking away, I rounded a pole and ran through the start.
It only took a matter of seconds to start catching up to people but unfortunately I all the way at the back of the pack. I tried to run by as many people as I could but the road turned into a trail and quickly narrowed. Leaving me stuck, shoulder to shoulder, row by row in a running traffic jam. I almost started to stress at this point but then I thought, maybe this is just what I need - a good steady warm up before I start trying to throw down any tougher paces. I continued to pass as quickly and as often as I possibly could, darting around and between people when the opportunity would arise. I started thinking to myself, this could actually be pretty interesting to see where I actually end up and how many people I actually pass during the course of this race. Then I laughed to myself as I recalled Ali's blog subtitle.
"While running, it is rude to count the people you pass out loud"
With that in mind, I continued to relax and settle into a nice pace which really wasn't that far off of what I had planned to run in the first place. By mile 1 the trail had widened and it became easier and easier to run at my desired pace. Soon after, I caught up with the leader of the Garden of the Gods training group I ran in. We chatted for a little while which was also probably a good move as it slowed me down once again. I was fine with this when we were hovering around 9:00/mi but when I noticed us spending a good amount of time around a 9:30 pace I had to part ways. I continued to steadily pass people for a good while though this slowed down the further I went as I was catching up to faster and faster runners.
I ended up arriving at the half-way turn around before I knew it. It was a beautiful day and the course was great. I felt great and was able to hold a good pace for much longer than I had expected. The nice part about the second half of the course is that it's slightly down hill most of the way which definitely helped as the miles wore on.
At around mile 10 I started to struggle a little bit and though my splits don't show it, I really started to hurt at mile 11. By mile 12 I was having an extremely hard time holding my pace and I was now being passed by some of those whom I had recently passed in the last couple miles. I struggled at mile 13 and when I finally made it back to the park, saw my cheering family and could actually see the finish line I started to feel a bit better. Although the finish line seemed like it was still a good mile away.
I passed on most water stations which I know I need to get better at but I really think this helped me until possibly towards the finish. My final place was 118th out of 407 so it looks like I could have passed around 290 people! Good thing I wasn't counting... out loud.
All in all it was an excellent race, great course, friendly people, beautiful weather, perfect temperature and lots of food and festivities at the finish.
Splits according to my garmin with a total time of 1:55:56 for 13.32 miles at an average pace of 8:42/mi.
Mile:
- 9:06
- 8:53
- 9:11
- 8:41
- 8:39
- 8:32
- 8:39
- 8:20
- 8:23
- 8:36
- 8:36
- 8:36
- 8:58
- 8:20 for .32 mi
Great race, course and run! I really enjoyed the 1/2 marathon distance and I'll definitely participate in another. I really think I'm getting hooked on this running stuff and look forward to continuing my running journey.