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Magellan Chicago Spring Half Marathon & 10K - RunHalf Marathon


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Chicago, Illinois
United States
Capri Events/Magellan Development Group, LLC
45F / 7C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 53m 6s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = F35-39
Age Group Rank = 18/103
Pre-race routine:

Got up at normal work time, took a quick shower and got all my stuff together to hop in the car and drive downtown. Met up with Whizzzzz and got all registered and stuff... and luckily, she noticed that my bib was a different color -- I had accidentally been given a 10k bib rather than the half mary bib! Ooops. Got that corrected, did the porta-potty line thing and otherwise had a relaxing pre-race.
Event warmup:

None, really, unless you count the stairs we climbed to get back to the parking garage to dump off our stuff because the gear check line was impossibly long.
Run
  • 1h 53m 6s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 38s  min/mile
Comments:

This was a great run for me. Went into the race not really trained, so wasn't sure what I could pull off. The first few mile paces were dictated by the crowds ... after that, I just kept trying to find people to follow who were working a good pace.

Around mile 8 or so, I realized that I could be close to my PR time, so decided to just push until I could push no more. I did what I had before: just try to find some fast feet to stick to to keep me on pace. As I hit mile 12, I knew it would be close and would require a faster mile than I've put together for a long time... and, I came up just short. 20 seconds short.

But - mentally - I really kept my head in this race. Stayed positive, never once did I slow or allow myself to get self-critical. Probably the best mental race I've ever had, honestly. And while I wish I could have pulled off a PR, I know I gave it everything I had.

Definite negative split race: my 10k split pace was 8:50, and my total race pace was 8:38. Niiiice.
What would you do differently?:

Perhaps if I had lined up closer to the front, I could have shaved off those 20 seconds in the first two miles by not having to fight the crowds as much. My first mile @9:12 and second @8:55 had plenty of breathing room to give me that extra 20 seconds I needed.
Post race
Warm down:

Crossed the finish line and was started to really tighten up, so I headed back to the lakefront to find Laura and bring her in... and that was probably one of the best things I could have done for myself - seems to have really kept the soreness at bay.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Training, as always. But that's just where I am right now in my season.

Event comments:

This was an inaugural race, and they really did a great job with it. Tons of volunteers, everything was run pretty much on time and the post-race food was pretty tasty! (a catered breakfast!). The course was very scenic, and only crowded for the first mile or so. Probably only two downsides: the gear check procedure needs to be refined because the line was huge and not moving fast, and while you get a tech t-shirt, there was no actual goody bag, which I kind of missed.

Overall, I highly recommend this race. I signed up race morning, but I'm going to guess that it's not going to take long before this race fills up beforehand and won't allow race-day registration.




Last updated: 2009-05-18 12:00 AM
Running
01:53:06 | 13.1 miles | 08m 38s  min/mile
Age Group: 18/103
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Course: Out to the lakefront, and then south to about the field museum and back around for another loop. A few roller sections, but mostly flat and scenic.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
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

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2009-05-18 6:46 AM

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Master
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Southwest Chicago 'burbs
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Subject: Magellan Chicago Spring Half Marathon & 10K


2009-05-18 11:22 AM
in reply to: #2157088

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Veteran
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Winter Park, Florida
Subject: RE: Magellan Chicago Spring Half Marathon & 10K
Great Job finding your pace!  I agree that the race was made especially nice due to the volunteers and water station people.  I made sure to say thanks and great job to each one as I went thru the stations.

For not really 'training' you did really well.  Make sure to pat yourself on the back for running such a good half and welcome the opportunity to get even faster if and when you decide to put some training in. 

Have fun this season!
eddie
2009-05-27 10:59 AM
in reply to: #2157088

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Veteran
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Chicago, IL
Subject: RE: Magellan Chicago Spring Half Marathon & 10K
Congrats on the great race.
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