Pueblo's Rock Canyon Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Pueblo, Colorado
United States
Southern Colorado Runners
20F / -7C
Overcast
 		Total Time = 1h 37m 55s
Overall Rank = 55/466
Age Group = M50-54
Age Group Rank = 4/30
Pre-race routine:

Normal breakfast
Event warmup:

Easy run from starting area over to the river trail to check out course conditions. The run included going down and up the big hill. I decided to stick with my regular racing shoes instead of the XC racers because the snow seemed grippy enough. It was only slippery in a few spots in the concrete paved area and not a factor.
Run
  • 1h 37m 55s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 07m 28s  min/mile
Comments:

NEW PR! Started a few rows back and got off to a decent start. The first half mile was a little slower trying to get around a few people. Just after the first loop in the park my friend Jim passed me and I stuck behind him. I've never beat him in a longer race. I decided to not let him go and I followed him for the next 3 miles, then made a strong pass and never saw him again. I was maintaining a pretty even pace throughout the race. I continued to pass people and don't recall being passed once I was on the river trail. Because I was keeping a decent pace I anticipated seeing the leaders at a certain point as they passed on the return, but the lead guy went by earlier than I expected. He had at least a half mile on second place and the others went by where I expected. I took a gel about mile 8. Came up behind some people running a good pace and followed for a couple miles to about the 11 mile mark, then passed them. Worked on catching the next guy up who had a couple hundred yards on me. Caught up to within about 5 yards by the finish. I backed off a little going up the steep hill figuring that would allow me to jump back up to pace fast at the top and it worked great. I ended up 4th in AG by just over 2 minutes and only just over 3 minutes out of first. I'm getting closer. Good race!

What would you do differently?:

Maybe start a little closer to the front to get out with the leaders before they get away.
Post race
Warm down:

Drank some water and gatorade, jogged around a bit.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Age! Really, not much. I ran about as well as possible. Maybe include more faster running in my training.

Event comments:

This is a real nice low budget race. It only cost $25 and that included a nice sweatshirt with no advertiser info. Much of the course is on a trail so there isn't much spectator support, which is fine with me. Weather can be a factor with a December race. Three years ago it snowed and the trail was difficult to run on.




Last updated: 2009-12-05 12:00 AM
Running
01:37:55 | 13.1 miles | 07m 28s  min/mile
Age Group: 4/30
Overall: 55/466
Performance: Good
Course: The race was run just over 2 miles in Pueblo City Park, then went down to the Arkansas River Trail. It was basically an out and back course going about 5 ½ miles west to the base of Pueblo Dam and back. It was run on dirt and asphalt trails along the Arkansas River, with a short distance on concrete. No traffic and great views. Despite the name the course is flat however, there was one short, steep hill about 12 3/4 miles into the race, which goes from the river trail back up to City Park.
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] 4