All State Life Insurace 13.1 New York - RunHalf Marathon


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Queens, New York
United States
All State
35F / 2C
Sunny
 		Total Time = 1h 52m 56s
Overall Rank = 504/2227
Age Group = 40-44
Age Group Rank = 45/145
Pre-race routine:

Woke up - did the bathroom thing - made a big bowl of oatmeal and washed it down with a tall OJ. Put my bag together with a bunch of SunRype product to give away at the race - and set out at 7:30am to get to Flushing Meadow.
Event warmup:

Had a hard time parking as there were road closures and I was detoured twice. Finally parked at 8:10am and then walked with the mob into the park ... boy was it cold - I was wearing sweatpants and a hoodie and I can honestly say I did not want to take them off! Got my bib and goodie bag/race shirt and then went to bag check where I stripped down and was COLD ... walked the 1/2 mile to the race start line then waited on the port-a-john line for 18 minutes or so (had a pre race eGel and about 10 ounces of water while in line) ... finally pee'd with three minutes to start. Tried to make myself up to my proper spot in the corral but ended up saying screw it and lined up by the 2:30 corral.
Run
  • 1h 52m 56s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 37s  min/mile
Comments:

I started further back then I would have liked and had a hard time getting to my proper pace. Took several miles before I was in my comfort zone, and then I realized I was pretty far BEHIND where I wanted to be so I picked it up and near mile 5 (had a Gu at this point) I finally saw and then past the 2 hour pace team. My plan was to hit 7 miles at an hour (I was a minute off) and then at mile 10 transition to a 5k and really kick. I increased tempo at mile 9 instead as I knew that from mile 10 1/2 to 12 I would face a headwind and I wasn't sure if I could handle the pace then ... I guess I know myself because my pace fell off considerably at mile 11 especially once I started getting weird twinges in my left calf and through to my thigh. This happened repeatedly but I was able to kick through it and run to the finish. I saw a guy fold and grab his calf less then 20 yards from the finish. I saw my time and raised my hands in triumph as I had set a new PR.
What would you do differently?:

If I had started near the 1:50 pace group I think I could have hung with them the whole course other than the final mile or so where my left leg muscles were acting "off" I felt really good. Last year the race conditions were much nicer and there were a good 500 more runners, the cold and wind kept people away but as I preform better in the colder temps this worked for me. If there was no wind I may have faltered less but who knows ...
Post race
Warm down:

I got my medal and walked through the food line, grabbed a water, a metal blanket thing, 2 Dole Mandarin Orange packs and some Oreos ... walked around to stay loose and checked the finish "expo" ... got on line and got my official time. Realized it was cold - really cold - so went to bag check - stripped down and put on my warm clothes. Walked around for about 20 minutes handing out free samples of SunRype products and talking to the people that wanted to chat with me about SunRype.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Just the weather and my internal demons that think I can't run any faster.

Event comments:

Had fun - would do it again ...




Last updated: 2012-08-27 12:00 AM
Running
01:52:56 | 13.1 miles | 08m 37s  min/mile
Age Group: 45/145
Overall: 504/2227
Performance: Average
My watch was not extremely accurate - I know I crossed the start line about a minute after the gun so used my watch and the mile markers (each mile had a clock from the gun start) and was able to get a line on my pace that way. My HR was in the 160's from the start and sat there the whole race - spiked higher when I made some efforts but pretty consistent.
Course: This course was slightly different then last year but I thought it was an improvement. Winding through Flushing Meadows Park you pass all the cool stuff in there, the Unishpere, the remnants of the World's Fair, a museum, a zoo, the lake, Arthur Ashe center and multiple playing fields. There were drumlines, cheerleaders, live bands and DJ's ... and despite the cold and wind there were a lot of people cheering on the runners and holding amusing and inspirational signs.
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: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4