Applefest Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Hollis, NH, New Hampshire
United States
Host Club: Gate City Striders
70F / 21C
Sunny
 		Total Time = 2h 29m 47s
Overall Rank = 862/911
Age Group = 30-34
Age Group Rank = 65/71
Pre-race routine:

Park car, take bus to race site. Pick up number and drop off bag. Walk around with husband, meet sister & brother and law and their friends. Drink a little water, stretch, use inhaler once.
Event warmup:

Walking, stretching, no jogging.
Run
  • 2h 29m 47s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 11m 26s  min/mile
Comments:

When I left the house this morning, it was a chilly 38 degrees, but I should have dressedin layers to peel off, because by the time the race started, it was approaching 70! I was hot and sweaty, working way to hard to keep cool during this race. I drank a lot, but when I finished, I was covered in salt. I'm impressed with my time, however, considering how little time I've devoted to training this summer. Most difficult things about the run were the (neverending!) hills, which were tough on the knees, not having electrolytes to drink with me (only brought water in the Fuel Belt), and lack of training (low flexibility and fatiguing legs).
What would you do differently?:

Work on running this winter to speed up, build endurance with proper training, and register for another to try it again! Oh yeah...and lose a few pounds to go easier on the knees!
Post race
Warm down:

Powerade, banana, PB&J; stretching, walking, water, remove wet clothing, as much as I could. Not enough stretching.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Lack of training.

Event comments:

A beautiful course, and a beautiful race day! Poor preparation made it not a great race for me, but the race itself seemed well-organized, and I earned a pin, a good long-sleeve t-shirt, a finisher's medal, and locally-made apple crisp! There need to be more Gatorade stations, in addition to the water stations.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2006-05-22 12:00 AM
Running
02:29:47 | 13.1 miles | 11m 26s  min/mile
Age Group: 65/71
Overall: 862/911
Performance: Below average
Average HR 173, Peak 195 (yikes!). Total calories: 2539
Course: 13.1 miles USAT&F certified #NH98001AM. Scenic, rolling, country paved roads. Strict traffic control. Water every 2 miles. Description from Applefest Web site: "While it is true that there is a hill as steep as the road up Mt Washington with a 10-12 percent grade, that hill comes just after mile 9 and is only 100 yards long. The reason the hills are labeled "killers" is that course conspires to do you in. However the course is so beautiful you will forgive it for the challenge it presents you, and the Apple crisp at the end will help you forget the tough part. The good news is that more than half the course is in the shade which can help quite a bit on a warm day. The course starts out down the high school entrance road and then left out for a 2 mile clock wise loop. It's flat for 1.2 miles until 1/4 mile gradual uphill at Merrill Rd. So many people are still together at this point you can be dragged along too fast by the enthusiasm at this point. The road is wide here so you won't be crowded. Mile 2 is out on Rt 122 in front of the high school where you started. Around mile 3 is a long downhill until you see Silver Lake State Park on your left. The course takes a right on S Merrimack after Mile 4. A ways after mile 5 the course goes right on Nevins. (Don't take Farley which is right after mile 5) Mile 4, 5 and 6 are a general down hill disguised in a number of rollers to keep you from getting complacent until after mile 6. Now remember, this isn't Kansas, these are New England "rollers". You can easily toast your legs during the first half of this race because many runners don't know how to run on their forefoot on the downhills and with all due respect to heel strikers, most people normally slam too hard. Running downhill can be done comfortably with practice. Actually, anytime you can hear a footfall someone is probably not running as smooth as they could. The course continues on Nevins until after mile 6 where is merges onto Farley coming in from the right. The runners just continue straight. Miles 6 to 8 is generally flat with a gentle roller after the course turns right onto Wheeler Rd. The 3 legendary hills on Wheeler road come just after mile 9. The tough part of Wheeler Rd on these hills covers about a mile and quarter. The first big hill includes the 100 yard challenge mentioned earlier with plenty of less intense uphill before this first hill creeps over some to where it levels off. However, then you're into the other two longer hills. The 100 yard steep start of that first hill is SO short that running hard at it buys you very little gain in total time and just might sap your strength for the next 1.2 miles to come. The last hill on Wheeler road is long and a less challengingly grade and you can see it from bottom to top. Most runners settle in on this one and grind it out until they clear the cemetery on the left at the top. Does a cemetery seem appropriate to put at the end of over a mile of challenging hills? We'll let you and the memories of prior year runners answer that. From there for the next 150 yards you get your breath and smile back so you look your best for the spectators who will be at the right turn on the main road which is both named Broad St and Route 130. Mile 11 is after this right turn. Runners will want to cross over to the left side of the road after the right turn. From that cemetery you have about 1.5 miles of extremely flat road, enjoy it because in that 1.5 miles of flat road the only thing you will have to run over will be a shadow and some road paint, nothing higher, really. Now, would Applefest let you off the hook that easy? No way! Just to get your attention again, just after mile 12, (where you are running over the same road as the opening 2 mile loop) you turn right and are treated to a 2nd crack at the 1/4-mile hill on Merrill Rd. After the Merrill Rd hill the Applefest course is finished with having its way with you and it's downhill most of the way to just a mild incline at the high school entrance. Now you've earn the post race spread."
Keeping cool Below average Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %0
Overall: Below average
Mental exertion [1-5] 2
Physical exertion [1-5] 2
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge Too hard
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? No
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4