Fleet Week 1/2 Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Norfolk, Virginia
United States
64F / 18C
Sunny
 		Total Time = 1h 37m 56s
Overall Rank = 91/874
Age Group = M 35-39
Age Group Rank = 17/104
Pre-race routine:

Up very early to drop the girls off and then off to the race site. Breakfast was my usual race day mix of an Iced Americano and a raspberry scone.
Event warmup:

Not too much warm up, just some light stretching. I bumped into one of my friends and we compared notes from Summer training or lack there of. I also met Matthew very quickly who had his chip and GPS stolen - that sucks!
Run
  • 1h 37m 56s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 07m 29s  min/mile
Comments:

This was my first actual race of any kind since IM CdA last June. I was looking forward to getting back into the swimg of things. Training over the Summer has been sporadic at best so I really didn't have any idea what to expect from this run. I ran a 1:34 last April in very cool weather so I knew a PR was out of the question. Honestly, given temps in the 60's (very nice, but not as ideal as last April), and my overall lack of training I was kind of hoping to run a sub 1:40.

Got to the start line and I was happy to be racing. When the alarm went off very early I couldn't remember why I do these things, but being at the start brought it all back to me. I felt alive and energized.

When the gun went off I was about 10 seconds from the starting mat. And then we were off. Honestly, much of the race was without incident. I hit the first mile right around 7:15ish and knew that was a bit fast. Passed one of my friends after mile 2 and chatted with him for a bit. At the turnaround after mile 3 (?) I started to look for LSU but never did see him and his wife - sorry! From that point on it was all about keeping pace. My goal was to keep my mile splits right around 7:30 for the rest of the run. I took my first bit of water somewhere after mile 6 and walked through the water station as I'm just not very good at running and drinking. Somewhere around mile 8 or 9, I saw one of the front of pack runners who was off course. Apparently he missed a turn - sorry for him. When he found out, he was pissed! Anyway, I hit mile 10 and was starting to fade a little, but I was also passing some others who were fading worse than me. I also realized at this point that I was right on track for my sub 1:40. Last mile was tough, but I did have a little kick left for the final stretch. Crossed the line and was happy to be back racing again. While taking my chip off I bumped into Matthew again who just PR'd. See - Ironman training really does pay off!

Unfortunately, I couldn't stay for any of the post-race activities as I had to go pick up the girls.

Overall, it was a good fun race with consistent pacing throughout. What's next??? :)
What would you do differently?:

Actually train.
Post race
Warm down:

Walked to the car.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Additional weight since IM CdA and lack of proper training.

Event comments:

Fun race. I will try to make this an annual run.




Last updated: 2007-10-01 12:00 AM
Running
01:37:56 | 13.1 miles | 07m 29s  min/mile
Age Group: 17/104
Overall: 901/874
Performance: Average
First 5 mile split time was 37:03.20 with a pace of 7:25 per mile. Second 5 mile split time was 37:39.25 with a pace of 7:32 per mile Last 5K split was 23:13.85 with a pace of 7:29 per mile.
Course: One big loop around Naval Station Norfolk. Fun, flat course with lots of ships to see.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
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:
Race evaluation [1-5] 4