Clemson Easter Bunny Run Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Clemson, South Carolina
United States
Adventure Geek Productions
50F / 10C
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 02m 5s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = 40-44
Age Group Rank = 3/13
Pre-race routine:

Was staying at my in-laws' in Clemson. Got up, most of my stuff was laid out the night before, got dressed, ready to go. I don't eat a proper breakfast before most morning runs, including races. Then I eat an Access bar about 15 minutes before the start.
Event warmup:

I jogged/walked down to the race start, I think by the time I got myself un-turned-around it was about 2 miles. I took a pedestrian path across campus that I hadn't taken before, and as I emerged from a parking lot I wasn't where I thought I was, and I did probably a half mile of backtracking. Oops.
Run
  • 2h 02m 5s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 09m 19s  min/mile
Comments:

This was a perfect day for a race - start temps were in the upper 40s and it was clear and sunny. I never got into a groove for this race. I don't know exactly what my problem was, but the effort was labored and sort of anxious? unnatural? the entire time. There is an uphill for the first mile or so coming out of the bot gardens that I think I must have pushed a little too hard, then I never really recovered from it. This is a hilly course and I knew it going in, I've run some of the roads, but for some reason the hills just killed me on this one.

Anyway, the areas through the neighborhoods were nice, I saw my family around mile 4 and that was a nice boost. I thought I'd really settle into the flatter trail areas on the dikes, but I found the change from the road surface to be a little unsettling.

The last few miles have some big hills, before a downhill back into the finish area (the reverse of the hill at the start). Although I didn't go into this race planning to run/walk (except water stops), I found myself taking frequent walk breaks in the last 3-4 miles or so.

In the end, the clock showed me coming in under 2 hours, my Garmin had me at 2:00:54 and 12.8 miles, and my official time was 2:02:05. The explanation I heard was that they had started the main clock late (hence the clock showing under 2 hours at my finish - they had it turned at an angle so it wasn't full-on visible as you went over the finish line). They also said that the start was essentially a gun-time start, whereas I had started my Garmin as I crossed the mats that I assumed were the start line - this explains the difference between my Garmin time and the official time. Then the finish was chip-timed. I don't know the reason for the course reading short on my Garmin. The official time would be a PR for me (old PR, 2:04:05) but in my mind it'll have an asterisk until I beat it. According to my Garmin, my pace was almost exactly the same as my old PR.

As it turns out, I took third in my AG (though it might have been a bump up with someone in my AG in the overall or masters top 3 - the online results don't give ages though). And on the books it's a PR, so I'm going to live and learn with this one. It's not like I totally sucked it up, I just felt awful.
What would you do differently?:

Take it easier at the start. I totally forgot the advice I'd gotten before my previous PR HM, which was - for the first half of the race, ask yourself "am I going slow enough?" and for the second half of the race, ask yourself "am I going fast enough?" I did not do either.
Post race
Warm down:

My family was at the finish and I took a little walk with my sister-in-law, drank some 'ade and water, and ate a banana.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

My mind, mostly. For some reason, I was just mentally off during this race.

Event comments:

This is a nice, smallish, well-supported half marathon (with associated 5K and Easter egg hunt). The course is challenging, with some good-sized hills especially toward the end. Clemson is a scenic town and campus, which I might have been able to appreciate a bit more had I not been so focused on not dying.




Last updated: 2012-02-28 12:00 AM
Running
02:02:05 | 13.1 miles | 09m 19s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/13
Overall: 0/
Performance: Average
Course: The course starts out through the botanical gardens, across campus, goes through some neighborhoods, then along a couple of dikes/trail areas, then back out onto the roads through campus. It starts and ends at the botanical gardens. Also, my Garmin came in at 12.8 miles, and I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one. The race organizers assured people that the course is the full 13.1, but I'm a little skeptical.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5] 2
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4