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One America 500 Festival Mini-Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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LSA Anaconda,
Iraq
75F / 24C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 53m 33s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group =
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

I was kinda "iffy" for this race for a couple of reasons. First, I've jammed the joint between my 5th phlange and metatarsal (think "pinky toe") on my right foot. It's been real sore for a good two weeks now. Second, this injury has put a real cramp in my mileage lately and I know I've lost a lot of run fitness. However, I decide to treat this as a test-run for my half-marathon coming up in October and do it anyway.

Woke up at 0430 for some pre-race food. I feel like I run better on an emptier stomach but I ate a peanut butter granola bar anyway. Started to prep my gear and lay out my things. About 0515, I decided to have a sports drink. I've had some good luck with the Tang sugar-free powders that they give out at the DFAC, so I quaffed a liter of that up to race time. This was step one of my downfall...
Event warmup:

Gathered up my gear and biked up to the starting line. I wasn't gonna be running or walking too well, so bike seemed the best mode of transportation. I didn't do a whole lot of warm up...it is a half-mary, right? So, just a lot of standing around and waiting and thinking. My friend, "P," has dreams of BQ'ing. However, his running has been off lately, too. I've told him this but he just kinda blows it off. I advise him to try to run a BQ pace (7:15) and see what happens.
Run
  • 1h 53m 33s
  • 12.6 miles
  • 09m 01s  min/mile
Comments:

The gun goes off and P heads out. My plan is to do 9:00 miles throughout and see how close I can get to breaking two hours. Should be easy, right? Another friend, "B," decides to tag along. She figures she can run 9:00 miles. So, me and my "little sister" take off together.

Many people start to pass me in the first mile and I just say to myself, "We'll catch them after mile 6 or so." Still, I'm a little worried because of my competitive nature. Still, my cooler head prevails, I don't eat the paste, and life is good.

This guy passes me in a Blues Brothers bike jersey so of course I have to turn to him and say, "It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, a half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark and we're wearing sunglasses." To wit he responds, "Hit it." We share a smile and he moves past me. I catch him later.

For the most part, I'm just enjoying the day. I see a number of people I recognize from various 5k's and biathlons and I chat them up as they pass me. Most of them I don't see again and that concerns me; more on that in the post-race analysis. People-wise it was a great time.

Support-wise it was a nightmare. Water stations were every two miles. Now, I know that I have enough electrolytes in me for a good long while. At the first water station at mile 2, I look for water. I'm handed Gatorade...under-diluted Gatorade. I look at the cup and throw it to the ground without a drink and drive on, thinking I can make up for it later. Next water station, same thing. Volunteers are overwhelmed and are handing out Gatorade like it's water...but it's not water, it's Gatorade and I know that I'm gonna start cramping if I drink it. So, I do an irresponsible thing. I see a pallet of bottled water there and I pull out a 1 liter bottle and drink maybe 6 oz. out of it. I throw it to the ground and drive on. The water station at 6 has water and I'm golden...except I only got about 4 oz. As I near the next water table, I check my watch.

I'm about an hour in and my fueling plan says its time for a PowerGel. I've used PG's before with mixed results but this is a different flavor with less caffeine. I suck it down and wash it down with 4oz. of water at the mile 7 water table. Houston... we have a problem. My stomach is a bit upset and I have some lower GI discomfort. But, I power on because, I'm not running that bad.

About mile 10 is when I knew I had a problem. I had just come through a water point, the second since mile 7, and I suddenly feel chilled. Then I realize that I'm not sweating. My HR is still good so I decide to be careful. I keep a close eye on my HR and start to walk through every water station. There are no less than three between mile 10 and the finish. I'm able to make 9:00-9:30 per mile between water stops and, somewhere in mile 11, I start to sweat again.

We make the turn for home and I check my GPS. I realize that the course directors have shorted us, like they usually do. I make the final couple of turns home and some kid decides to push to the finish. I have flashbacks of my high school track coach screaming at me after I got caught from behind, so I leg it out with him. Bad move. When I tried to stop from the sprint, my legs almost collapsed underneath me. They said to me, "Hey pal, we've been pounding the pavement for the last 2 hours. Take it easy!"

P was waiting for me with a water. He commented that I had a lot of salt around my face. More confirmation that my electrolytes were off, I think. I looked at my GPS to see less than two hours and I was somewhat excited. Then I saw the distance: 12.65 miles. Shit. Robbed again. Still, I guess I'll chalk it up to a great training run.
What would you do differently?:

Pacing was good. Plan was good. I knew my body and knew what I was capable of. I held off early and planned to pick up some if I felt good in the latter parts of the race. It's a good plan and I think I'll stick to it.

Differently? Well, I've got to find a better nutrition plan. I should have known that I am perceptible to cramping if I have too many electrolytes; it's happened to me before. The PG mid-race was a no-no. So, more experimentation is needed with that. I also should have brought my fuel belt with some water. That would have allowed me to supplement my hydration. I made the mistake of trusting the race directors over here to know what to do.
Post race
Warm down:

Warm-down? No. Cool-down? YES! The finish was near the outdoor pool here at LSA Anaconda. I had pre-briefed P and B that I was going to the pool right after. The water is just about 75 degrees, not quite wetsuit legal, and feels a bit cold. I would have prefered a true ice bath but I didn't want to push it. The three of us went straight to the pool and waded around for about an hour. Just walking, talking, chilling, moving, stretching and relaxing.

I felt kinda guilty because I should have been at my place of duty. But, I knew that there wasn't much going on AND this was going to enable me to get back to normal faster. "Shamming" for just this one morning was going to make me more productive later.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I'm glad my nutrition blew up on me during this race. I'll have enough time to tweak it and improve it.

Not enough long runs. Even with the gap in training, I wouldn't have run much more than an 8 or 9 miler. I'm going to need some double-digit distance runs to get ready for the fall.

My weight. I know I always say this but this time I felt it. There were a lot of people that I know who don't run as much as I do or as far and they finished ahead of me on this run. I want to say it was embarrassing but that's not quite the right word. What was embarrassing was some of the photos that I've seen. My self-image has been warped and these photos show it. I've had the last 10 months to do something about my weight and I still weigh the same as when I got here. I think I'm just about as fit and as fast as I can be for 245 lbs. If I'm going to get faster, I've got to get lighter.

Event comments:

These rankings are just a vent. What else can I expect when the Army puts on a race like this in a forward area?




Last updated: 2008-05-04 12:00 AM
Running
01:53:33 | 12.6 miles | 09m 01s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Below average
Course: Flat and snakey...a total mind screw. I've chased my nephews through a toy store and not turned around this much! Paved the whole way just way too many switch backs. I would have prefered a two-lap course to this piece of crap!
Keeping cool Good Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Below average
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? No
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? No
Plenty of drinks? No
Post race activities: Below average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3

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2008-05-04 12:36 PM

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Subject: One America 500 Festival Mini-Marathon


2008-05-05 6:15 PM
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