Carlsbad Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Carlsbad, California
United States
In Motion
45F / 7C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 34m 31s
Overall Rank = 197/7026
Age Group = M40-45
Age Group Rank = 20/2699
Pre-race routine:

Woke up at 5am to eat some a bagel w/PB, juice, and coffee, and then got ready.

Was doing the race with my mom and 2 sisters, and my mom had VIP parking, so we arrived about an hour before the race and only had a short walk.

Event warmup:

Had to go to the bathroom, so my warm-up was about a half mile jog to and from bathroom in mall. Luckily, the line for the men's room was short since I got back to my wave area at the starting line just in time for the national anthem. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to stretch.
Run
  • 00m
  • 13.1 miles
  •  min/mile
Comments:

Went out with the 1:35 pace group and felt great for about the first 7 miles. Our pace group was a little ahead of pace and I was feeling good, so I pulled ahead some. However, at around mile 8, I could feel my quads starting to tighten and by mile 10 they felt like they were filled with lead and my left calf started to hurt. I stopped to try to stretch at mile 10 but it didn't help much. I fell back in with the 1:35 pace group and tried to run the last 3 miles without using my left calf (by not pushing off w/my foot). The last 3 miles were very tough, but felt good going downhill the last mile (the cool breeze helped). I managed a kick the last 0.1 mile and passed a few people.

I was happy to finish under 1:35 but I think I could have shaved at least 2 minutes off my time if my calf didn't start to hurt (though my quads still would have slowed me down some).

Enjoyed the scenery on the 1st half, but after mile 8, I could only focus on the few feet in front of me.
Post race
Warm down:

Grabbed water, stretched, then sat down to wait for my sisters/mom and cheer them on.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Think I need to do some more longer distance runs (14-15 mi) in training and some more tempo runs as part of my longer runs in order to improve my time. I had averaged over 30 mpw the last month and a half before the race, with a long runs of 11, 12, and 13 miles, but I still didn't feel as prepared to race as I would have liked.

It would probably help if I kept my mileage above 20 mpw in tri season so when I ramp back up for my next half marathon, it's not as much of a jump in mileage.

Event comments:

Got a PR, since it was my first HM. This really is a great race with a lot of cheering supporters and a beautiful course. Also, it was great to have pace groups, since I usually start out way too fast and pay the price later in the run.




Last updated: 2011-01-02 12:00 AM
Running
00:00:00 | 13.1 miles |  min/mile
Age Group: 20/2699
Overall: 178/7026
Performance: Average
I missed seeing several mile markers so I didn't have my exact splits for a couple of the miles. According to the web site results, I was on a 7:09 pace for the first 6.6 miles and finished with a 7:13 pace overall, so my second half (6.5) pace was around 7:17. (Some miles estimated, since I missed a few mile markers) Mile 1: 7:28.29 (marker wasn't measured right according to pacer) Mile 2: 6:51.00 Mile 3: 6:50.05 Mile 4: 6:50.05 Mile 5: 7:07.25 Mile 6: 7:05.56 Mile 7: 7:05.30 Mile 8: 7:06.65 Mile 9: 7:15.14 Mile 10: 7:30.40 Mile 11: 8:03.95 (includes ~20-30 secs to stop and stretch) Mile 12: 7:29.60 Mile 13: 7:08.67 Mile 13.1: 0:40.54
Course: Scenic out and back course, where most of the course is along the ocean. Starts with an uphill section, has some rolling hills in the middle, and a downhill section near the end. Lots of cheering spectators and several different music bands playing along the way.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
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