Schaumburg Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Schaumburg, Illinois
United States
30F / -1C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 57m 55s
Overall Rank = 651/1647
Age Group = M35-39
Age Group Rank = 66/125
Pre-race routine:

I had two full days of carbo loading and rest to prepare for this race, of course the carbo loading consisted of 20 lbs of turkey, potatoes, stuffing, bread and pecan pie... I had to wear sweatpants to make it through the days. I awoke from my food coma at 7am on Saturday, had some coffee and cliff bar on the drive to Busse Woods and prayed that I can at least wobble my way to the finish line.
Event warmup:

Not gonna lie here, it was freakin cold outside, so I sat in the heat of my car as long as possible before making my way to the start line and chatting up some friends before the race. I was worried that I did not dress warm enough for the race, I wore my running tights, long sleeve compression shirt, long sleeve tech shirt with a thin stocking cap and gloves. Did a little stretching and shivering before the start... I just wanted to get the race going just so my body temp would rise and I could feel my toes again.
Run
  • 1h 57m 55s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 09m  min/mile
Comments:

I had the pre-race ultimate best case scenerio goal of breaking 2 hours, but realistically I felt prepared for 2:10. My longest run ever was 8 miles and that was completed a week before and even then I was pacing for 2:08, but primarily I just wanted to finish knowing that I tried my best and put in a good effort.
I lined up with the 1:55 pace group with hopes of keeping with them as long as possible and did just that until I had to stop at mile 5 to relieve myself from the coffee and lost about a minute for that stop. I regained composure and ran a steady pace, still within my pace group. Surprisingly I was quite comfortable and in cruise control knocking off miles within seconds of the 8:47/mi goal pace. I did end up walking through the last two water stations, but not for any extended periods of time. A friend of my followed my progress around the course, screaming, um encouragement the entire time (you most likely heard her), her support helped to push me to the finish.
I was elated to have finished my first half marathon in under 2 hours with a time of 1:57:55. The legs still felt good and could have gone one for more miles.
What would you do differently?:

Beside practice an actual race preparation nutrition and training plan, I wouldnt have done anything differently. I took water at each aid station, no gatorade or gels.
Post race
Warm down:

Grabbed some water, gatorade and snacks after the race, tried to keep moving to prevent locking up and chatted with some friends post race.

Didn't get to meet any other BT'ers at the race... probably should have organized and pre-race meet beforehand.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Turkey and Pecan Pie

Event comments:

I enjoyed this race, it was well organized and everyone there seemed to have a good time. I would do this race again.




Last updated: 2012-11-26 12:00 AM
Running
01:57:55 | 13.1 miles | 09m  min/mile
Age Group: 66/125
Overall: 651/1647
Performance: Good
Course: Winding paved trail run through Busse Woods in Schaumburg, IL with some out and back sections.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4