Vancouver Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
Vancouver, British Columbia
Canada
Vancouver International Marathon Society
50F / 10C
Sunny
 		Total Time = 1h 51m 52s
Overall Rank = 1230/6526
Age Group = 40-44
Age Group Rank = 56/568
Pre-race routine:

Woke up early...ate oatmeal and a banana, and had tea, since I had forgotten my coffee in the car and didn't feel like trekking to go and find it. I knew I had a Gu with caffeine to eat at the start so I would be ok.

Body glided everywhere, especially feet, as I didn't want blisters! I didn't wear my HRM. I knew my heart knew what to do and it didn't matter what it was doing as long as it didn't stop.

Headed about a mile down to the race about 6:25 (race was at 7), hit the porta potty, saw friends Renee (doing the 8k) and Matt (marathon), snapped some pix with them. Hugged Heather and wished her good luck in her marathon and headed to the start.
Event warmup:

I had planned to start with the 1:45 pace bunny, but the start was sooooo crowded that I could barely see any of the pace bunnies. I spent about 8 minutes trying to move ahead in the crowd but it became impossible. So I just jumped around and did some stretches until the race started.
Run
  • 1h 51m 52s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 32s  min/mile
Comments:

I didn't put much thought into the race and didn't have a race plan. I decided not to wear my HRM and also not to really check the Garmin very often and just go with how I was feeling.

For over half of the race, I was really in the groove, feeling amazing....better than I have ever. Not short of breath, feeling fast (and split times reflect that!). Unfortunately my right hip has been bothering me for a while and it started acting up around 10 miles in, but I ran through the pain, realizing there is nothing I can do now except finish and then deal with it. I didn't get a single blister or any other issues....the body really held up! I had hydrated really well the two days prior to the race, and I think that really helped. I made sure to drink at every water stop and had a total of 3 GUs for the race.
What would you do differently?:

Run faster....ha....always a goal. But I am darn happy with the results. Top 10% in my age group and top 20% OVERALL!!! Yeah, I'll take that.


Post race
Warm down:

After the finish, they shuttled us into a long line for water and food...it was weird, as I wanted to stretch out but there wasn't space until after the food. I did stretch a bit, walked around looking for my friends but didn't see them, so I walked back to the hotel and took a shower and used the foam roller, then walked back to watch Heather finish the marathon.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

My hip pain definitely played a factor in the last few miles.

Event comments:

I hope to do this race every year. It was so well run, such a good time, and one of the most beautiful courses I can imagine. We were very lucky with the weather, too.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2011-04-29 12:00 AM
Running
01:51:52 | 13.1 miles | 08m 32s  min/mile
Age Group: 56/568
Overall: 1230/6526
Performance: Good
Mile split times (with notes about the race) 1-8:50 (crowded at the start, trying to get by slower people) 2-8:21 (still crowded, felt the espresso GU kick in!) 3-8:18 (feeling great) 4-8:02 (feeling really great!) 5-7:47 (feeling amazing!) 6-8:14 (still feeling great) 7-8:15 (yep, in the groove for sure) 8-8:48 (uphill begins in Stanley Park) 9-9:33 (uphill!) 10-7:46 (downhill) 11-8:28 (hip starts really bothering me) 12-8:38 (hip sore but end in sight) 13-8:14 (crowds are cheering, spirits high, hip-who cares) last .28 according to Garmin-7:53 (yeah! Great race and it's over!!)
Course: First few miles of rolling hills through downtown Vancouver....followed by about 4-5 miles through gorgeous Stanley Park--super views of the mountains and water the whole way..the final couple of miles through the downtown again. The biggest hill was in the park, and it was not steep, but it was long. I drove it later in the day and was amazed at just how long it was! There were tons of people out cheering us on, plenty of Gu and water stops, and great entertainment on the course--a Chinese dragon dancer in Chinatown, Native American drummers, African drummers, etc. Very fun to see the support out there in the most beautiful city. We had the absolute best weather possible.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
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] 5