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Comments: I smartly started out slowly, but slower than I probably should have. I have my first Half-Ironman in 8 days, so I wasn't sure if I wanted to attack the course or go casual. I figured I'd start out casual, and see how I feel. When I saw I was at 8:44 after Mile 1, I knew I had enough to go faster. Only problem was around Mile 2 my bladder was telling me I drank too much beforehand. *sigh* I knew there was no way I'd finish with the degree of urgency, so when I saw a bunch of guys in the same predicament off to the side of the road just before Mile 3, I did the same. Cost me at least 30 seconds, but it was better than waiting for one of the port-a-pottys along the way (the lines were all at least 5 deep). When we hit the first hill around Mile 5, I decided to stride up it and keep the stride going for a bit after to see how I felt. No problem. Nice! I did the same at every hill and felt great. My splits kept dropping, and I was impressing myself that I was consistently hitting sub-8's. Imagine my surprise when I started closing in on sub-7! I never got it, though - came close with the last mile at 7:06. Only downside that I could tell was my quads felt a bit tight. But I felt strong the entire course - no fatigue, no real soreness or aches. What would you do differently?: Not over-hydrate beforehand, especially with such mild temperatures. Get to the race early enough to start with the right pace group. Go out just a little bit faster.  Post race
Warm down: Took in some Powerade, bananas, chocolate milk. Didn't feel the need for any massages. Didn't stretch right away, but did later. Took advantage of the free beers after the 'good' food had settled and I found my friend. What limited your ability to perform faster: The fact that I'm starting a taper week for the HIM in 8 days was constantly in the back of my mind. If it wasn't so close, I would have gone out a bit harder. Knowing I'm capable of the times I logged was actually a huge confidence booster, not just for the HIM but other events also. Event comments: Glad I had a friend to mill around with afterwards. Apparently runners can have as much Coors Light as they wish after they finish! And other goodies too, of course. I just wish they had a few more port-a-potties at the start. It was a madhouse once there was less than 10 minutes until the start. They're probably limited on space, though. Great support along the route, great volunteers, great finish area. This'll definitely be an annual event for me. Last updated: 2013-06-02 12:00 AM
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United States
Dam to Dam
68F / 20C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 732/7087
Age Group = M40-44
Age Group Rank = 92/422
Up at 4:30,. had steel oats oatmeal w/apples, coconut milk, and banana. It's a decent bus ride from downtown (race finish) to the dam (race start) so on the ride I had some Stinger Energy chews. Once we got dropped off I waited until about 20 minutes to the start and downed a Gatorade pre-race fuel. I was drinking a fair amount of water on the bus ride too. A bit too much, as it would turn out.
Didn't have any time to warm-up, per se. Waited in line for 30 minutes to use a port-a-potty, got in about 4 minutes before the race start. There was no way I was going to get up to the 8-9 min pace group, so I casually jogged up to the back of the group (It was probably long enough to officially be a half-marathon if included with the recorded distance). I was a good 8 minutes back from the timing mat when the gun went off, so I kept lightly jogging and fast-walking my way up until I got to the mat.