Shamrock Sportsfest Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Virginia Beach, Virginia
United States
Shamrock Sportsfest
45F / 7C
Overcast
 		Total Time = 1h 58m 6s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group =
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Stayed overnight at a friend's house in Virginia Beach so I didn't have to get up so early. Smart move on my part! I had my usual bagel, but no milk for breakfast. I didn't want that coming back later. Tried to find the right balance with my water... wanted to stay hydrated, but not have to pee at the start of the race. Success!
Event warmup:

Walking the 7 blocks or so from my car to the race start. No sense in warming up. I was really early, I'll warm up during the first 5K, and it was cold and windy outside. Warming up meant trying to stay warm to me.
Run
  • 1h 58m 6s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 09m 01s  min/mile
Comments:

Felt pretty good at the start. I tucked myself in behind some people to let them block the wind, and that worked well. I occasionally passed people, always drafting on someone else. I kept it slow at the start, since I can't handle the cold. I picked up the pace for the second 5K and was feeling really good. At about mile 7, I started having some really bad chest pains, so I slowed the pace down some, hoping they would ease. I'm not sure if they did or if I just started ignoring it, but I couldn't feel them anymore, so I got back into pace around mile 9. I was still running slower than I've been training, but I know running on roads slows me down, along with dodging other people, and not having my iPod (I obeyed the rules). By mile 12, I was tired and my legs were cold and starting to cramp because of the cold. Guess I should have eaten a banana before the race, but I didn't have any. It was a struggle to push through that last mile, but I finished strong. Less walking in those last few miles than in my last half. And I broke two hours. Yay!

And my feet feel fine. Hopefully the shoe problem has been resolved.
What would you do differently?:

Run faster. Pray harder for warmer weather. Maybe drink a little more. And train with 12 mile runs for a few estra weeks, ezpecially on roads. But that goes back to the shoe drama...
Post race
Warm down:

Walking back to my car. I was actually cold by the time I got there. Sat in there while I ate and made phone calls, then I hopped on my friends bike to go back to the finish line. All was good. Got a hot shower to loosen the muscles a bit, then got stuck in horrible traffic getting back to Langley, so I stiffened up in the car.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

The cold, the wind, the people in my way, my mental dislike of the cold and the wind, my fear of my shoes. Tiredness before the race even started. First thing in the morning is not my good time.

Event comments:

Very good race. Lots of fun people to see, lots of cheering. Some of the half marathon mile markers were hard to spot or non-existant, but that's a minor thing.




Last updated: 2008-03-16 12:00 AM
Running
01:58:06 | 13.1 miles | 09m 01s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Course: Mostly flat, over roads, with a finish on the concrete boardwalk. We ran out Atlantic, up shore drive, through Fort Story, back down Atlantic to the boardwalk. Nice run course. Head winds going out and a little bit of a tail wind coming back.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5]
Physical exertion [1-5]
Good race?
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4