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Philadelphia Half-Marathon
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Philadelphia Half-Marathon - RunHalf Marathon
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Comments: I cannot possibly describe how awesome this was for me. Every time I looked at my watch I saw 9 m/miles on average. I only felt tired about 3 times. I walked the hills, which is my custom, and it worked great. I felt refreshed at the top and sped off while my fellow racers just dragged themselves over. I had gels at miles 5 and 10 (as planned) and got a bit of water at only 2 stops. I was dressed perfectly for the weather. It felt great and I didn't need my earband or gloves after about 2 miles. I saw lots of overdressed, miserable people. I'm sure that's what I looked like at past races in hotter weather. The only tough part was right at the end and the sun was getting hot for me. It was chilly though - the water on the ground was freezing at the stops and it was slippery. The last cup of water I had had ice in it. Considering I usually have to dump the water on my head (I resisted :)), this was a new experience. I was about 5 minutes ahead of the marathon winner, so all eyes were on the finish. The half-marathon ran with the full for the entire race until we got back to the museum then split for the other half of their route up river. I felt so bad for the people who were only half done! It was fun to guess who was doing which race although I talked to no one while I was running. I saw Spiderman and a dude dressed as a lemon. I saw in the paper later he was carrying a lemonade stand sign the whole way, which I couldn't see the front of. I really was totally focused which was good for me. What would you do differently?: Nothing. It was a perfect situation for me. I picked this race mostly because I thought the weather would be good for me and I was right. Only cool/cold weather halfs for me from now on!  Post race
Warm down: Grabbed food in the food tent, but since I was there alone I just left for the hotel. Thought it best to keep walking. Made my way slowly back to the hotel (now, it was COLD) and tried to keep my foil wrap around me. Took a shower and spent the afternoon sightseeing, once my husband, brother-in-law and his girlfriend showed up. What limited your ability to perform faster: I never do the whole training plan perfectly, but I did better than usual this time. I needed this confidence to see I can improve if I keep trying. Next time (???) I will keep working the plan. I can see I need to adjust my training paces, which will help. But I am totally thrilled with this particular event. Absolutely no regrets. Event comments: This was way up there. They did everything I needed, but I wouldn't say they exceeded my expectations. The only bummers for me was the post-race food (pretty lame: cold pretzels, banana, juice and a tiny granola bar) and it was difficult to navigate the convention center. First it was hard to find the right building and then it was impossible to walk around the vendor area. Although the packet pickup was excellent. I would definitely do this one again. Last updated: 2008-04-02 12:00 AM
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 2008-11-28 5:11 PM |
Champion  10018  , Minnesota Bronze member |  Subject: Philadelphia Half-Marathon |
| 2008-12-01 8:34 AM in reply to: #1829768 |
Master 2346   Dayton, Minnesota Bronze member | Subject: RE: Philadelphia Half-Marathon Great job, Emily! A big, big congratulations!! |
| General Discussion-> Race Reports! |
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United States
Philadelphia Half-Marathon
35F / 2C
Overcast
Overall Rank = 2262/5302
Age Group = F30-34
Age Group Rank = 164/472
I came to Philly because my in-laws live in South Jersey and we were going to visit for Thanksgiving. So I headed into town on Saturday midday and checked into the hotel, got my race packet, and found some lunch. I walked around a bit more than I wanted to before a race, but took it easy and spent the day banking calories :) Hit a few street vendors and got my favorite Philly food: hotdog with mustard and a pretzel with mustard. Also couldn't resist a Tastykake from the Wawa. I was lucky to have a room with a fridge, so I got a few things for race morning like a banana and oatmeal. I think that being in town alone (not the original plan, but my husband stayed behind to do something on Saturday night) was in my favor. I was able to focus on getting what I needed. I had a nice dinner in the hotel restaurant (Chinese) and got into my room and into bed early.
On race morning I got on my favorite running clothes, fuel belt and new earband that I bought at the expo. I chugged my oatmeal, banana, some water and headed out to the race start which was just a few blocks away. The street was full of runners but it had that eery quietness that often precedes a race. We were all focused and the sun was just rising. It was awesome.
I got into my corral and chatted with some other ladies. I seeded myself with a 2:15 expected finishing time, but it was biggish corral. One gal I talked to was planning on 2:05. Everyone was complaining of cold (puh-leeze!) but I was fine. I ate my first caffeinated gel about 5 mins before 7. We heard we would start at 7:11, although once things got rolling we were at the line at 7:08. The wheelchair racers decided not to do the marathon and opted for the 8k due to the "weather". I imagine that cool weather and top speeds in the chair must be cold, although there was no other "weather" to be concerned with. It was shaping up to be a beautiful day. Once we got to the start it was chillier because the crowd was less dense, so I was glad when we were off.