Race Report - 13.1

This year I have not been able to focus on my running as much as I would like to and as a result, have not had high expectations for myself or performances in races. I have also been running in more half marathons as I don’t have the time to commit to the full marathon. I am enjoying the shorter distance and also the increased speed. I set a half-marathon PR at the NYRR Half Marathon (1:31:??) and was so bummed I did not come under 1:30!

I went into this race with low expectations but wanting a 1:30. After my terrible half marathon at the AT&T Giant Race I was looking for redemption. I didn’t place too much pressure on myself as I have not been running or working out much due to the long hours at work and late nights working on my research papers. I felt prepared when I showed up at the starting line and was super excited! I met this amazing runner while waiting in the starting corral. She is an experienced and elite runner from the Washington D.C. area who offered me some great racing advice on pacing and shoes. (She was wearing the Brooks T6 which I have been wanting to try but do not think I’m fast enough yet to wear something that light). She was looking towards a 1:25:?? finishing time but was going to take the first half at a 1:29:00 pace so she encouraged me to stay with her and she’d help me hit a 1:30. I was so appreciative and amazed that she was being so helpful. Even though running is an individual sport, people usually are not always eager to help the competition! We started out fast but I felt great. I kept telling myself to hold on until I felt I needed to slow down and back off. It was super super hot and humid so I also made a point of drinking early and at every water stop. Around the 4 mile mark, the girl I was running with started to slow down and back off. I kept looking at my Garmin and was not sure if I should slow down too or keep the pace. I felt great so I decided to keep the pace and run my own race. As we drifted apart I told her she’d pass me later in the race as I totally expected to blow up around mile 10 (which I kind of did!). I ran by myself for the majority of the race, passing a few guys along the way and keeping pace with one for about 2 miles. Most of my runs leading up to this race had been around 10 miles. I think it was psychological that around 10.5 miles my body began to slow down and my legs started to feel super heavy. I didn’t know if I could hold the pace but people along the course kept telling me I was the #3 female so I kept pushing. There was a short turnaround at the 11-12 mile mark where I saw that I was in fact that 3^rd girl and 4^th wasn’t too far behind. My friend from the starting line really looked like she was having a bad race and I was totally bummed for her (but happy with my decision to keep pace on my own). I was mentally losing it around 12 miles and started calculating what my finishing time would be if I walked or slowed down. I do this every race when I’m near the end and while I never do either, I can’t stop my mind from going there! What was deceiving about this finish is that we were running around a lake for the last 1-2 miles so I could see the finish area and crowds of people but not exactly where the finish line was so I couldn’t tell when to kick it into gear although I didn’t have much left. I kept pushing, thinking that the next girl was right behind me. I couldn’t believe the clock at the finish line. Not only did I break 1:30, I crushed my previous PR set in March by over 2 minutes! My clock time was 1:28:36! I was super super excited to podium but more excited to break that 1:30 barrier! Now I know I have the speed and can dig deep. I’m ordering some T6’s!