Pacers Running Festival Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
Arlington, Virginia
United States
Pacers Running Stores
75F / 24C
Sunny
 		Total Time = 00m
Overall Rank = 512/938
Age Group = F35-39
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

I told myself Sat. night to get up early enough to get my stuff together and eat a good meal before the race. I live only about 5 min. from the start line so it would be easy for to slack off. And I did a pretty good job of a morning prep.
Event warmup:

Not much - just a little run down the block and stretching. I had ridden my bike 54 miles on Sat. so I just wanted to warm the muscles up a bit.
Run
  • 2h 04m 38s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 09m 31s  min/mile
Comments:

My goal for this race was to keep it under 9:30 pace. It was strictly practice for my HIM in June. I did a long ride yesterday and then wanted to test the legs today. The downhill was a blessing in the beginning b/c my body was a little tight and winded from Saturday. But after two or so miles I settled into a nice pace. I felt good and the HR stayed in the 150s (Zone 3 for me) and the time went by quickly.

The course was hillier than I thought it would be but I just put the head down and tried to power up. I ran a good race but faded a bit over the last 2 miles. The strong headwind didn't help and I knew I was going to be inside the 2:05 goal I set. At one point I thought about a PR (1:58) but decided that was not the purpose of this race and I was prepared for that.

One note - my watch and their clock did not agree. I came in at 2:03:58 according to my watch. So I believe I was 30 sec. faster than their clock. I know I started my watch before the mat and stopped it after. But no biggie, it wasn't a BQ time. LOL
What would you do differently?:

Not much - the race went well. Next week Marine Corp Half - more practice!
Post race
Warm down:

I walked around and saw some friends including fellow BTer, Chrissy. We chatted, ate some snacks which I shared w/ my kids then went to the Italian store for a slice of Nino's pizza. Ummmmm!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Long ride from yesterday but this was for practice so I was happy w/ the pace.

Event comments:

The race was ok. Good for a first time around. The volunteers were great and there was plenty of water/powerade on the course. I hope the race can grow and the course can get a little more interesing. It's great having this race in my backyard.




Last updated: 2009-04-29 12:00 AM
Running
02:04:38 | 13.1 miles | 09m 31s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/938
Performance: Good
Course: A bit boring on the Arlingon highways. Flat to rolling and one steep hill.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5]
Physical exertion [1-5]
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] 3