Ocala Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon

I was really uncertain how I would perform at this race. I only had 3 "long" runs prior to this race of 5, 6 and 7 miles. I knew I could cover the distance but was not hoping for anything near my PR pace.

Race goal was to run a Galloway 2:30/1 interval for as long as I could. I set the watch but forgot to reset the # of intervals and it ended up stopping at 2.63 miles. From that point on I had to depend on my Husband who had his watch set correctly. However it did give me some good mile data that is interesting to look at.

First 6 miles were relatively uneventful. We tried to chase down two men (Pace booty if you will, for me anyways) but lost them at the out and back section. The back half was a mental game for me. My left leg was killing me because of the constant running on a banked road. Tried as best I could to run in the middle of the road but traffic was heavier than I would have liked in some areas. I knew I would finish but the cold was starting to break me down.

I ended up only 1:11 off PR pace and honestly surprised. It is partly due to having my husband run with me who pushed me the entire way to keep going. Probably would have slowed down a tiny bit without him. I really pushed the last mile and a half in an attempt to get closer to the PR area. However that is where the wind really picked up. Looking at the data my heart rate really surged during that final push.

Overall this race will take me just a tad bit longer to recovery from but honestly I couldn't have asked for a better result considering the circumstances.

Train Better. My "A" race was back in November, and I havent trained well since then. Training wasn't bad but definitely not on point. With more adequate training, I know that I could have smashed my PR. This race taught me that I an consistent in my new speed and that my PR back in November was not a fluke.

I walked approximately half a mile to get the heart rate down. I immediately changed shirts for some warmth and then started stretching. The weather was unbearable at this point and all of our spectators were wrapped in blankets. After looking at the results, I drank a bottle of Recoverite and immediately headed for some lunch.


Adequate training.

My nurition intake was good for the course and the weather. Carried a bottle of Heed and took in about half. I ate two of DH's shot bloks and took two gels, one at mile 5 and the other at mile 10. I am trying to work through what Half Iron nutrition is going to look like and what my body can handle. Mentally, I needed that much nutrition but know that my last half was done on water and 1-2 gels.


Overall the race was good and the organization went well but I was not fond of this course. I wouldn't completely cross this race off of my list but it is definitely not my first race that I want to sign up for again. Very convenient location for having a ton of family come watch us run.

For me, mentally this would be an extremely tough marathon course as they had two loops of the same stuff and an even longer out and back section. Decent course for seasoned runners but I wouldn't recommend this course for first timers.