ASYMCA Mud Run

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ASYMCA Mud Run - Run8k


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Norfolk, Virginia
United States
ASYMCA
Overcast
 		Total Time = 46m 29s
Overall Rank = 76/1990
Age Group = 30-34
Age Group Rank = 16/85
Pre-race routine:

Got up late due to my alarm (phone) being on vibrate but able to make it out the door at 6:45am.

Took down a Snicker's Marathon bar and a half can of AMP Energy Drink during the drive. Sat in traffic due to a line of racers waiting to get into Gate 3. Luckily I had base stickers so I jumped out the line and went in through Gate 5. Didn't make it to the parking field that I usually parked at the previous years due to another line of traffic so we made it to another parking lot a bit further down. Barely made it to chip pick up and to the 8am Wave 1 start. Caught up with Don and Bob on the way to the race site.
Event warmup:

Unfortunately I only had time to do some stationary stretching at the start line. We managed to get a brisk walk in from the parking lot but didn't do any warm up jogs/runs.
Run
  • 46m 29s
  • 4.97 miles
  • 09m 21s  min/mile
Comments:

The overall experience this year was much better. The only problem was the traffic and although I came in at the same time last year, there seemed to be a lot more runners. Checking the difference from last year and this year though, it was only about 200 more runners. Maybe it was just bad timing?
What would you do differently?:

This year I was satisfied. I was at the "retirement" end of my age group bracket so I wasn't expecting much but was still very happy with my standings. Next year will be a new AG for me and with the times I put in this year, I would have placed 10th. With the best time of 40:38 in the 35-39 bracket, I'm definitely looking to make the AG podium next year.

Water wasn't much of a factor. It was a short race and I could usually go 4-5 miles at race pace before taking in liquids so I wouldn't change anything for next year, though there were enough water stations.
Post race
Warm down:

Hung around for a bit and socialized with Kathy, Don, Roman, Ausrine, Bob, Mike, Erich. They offered pizza and beer but I just finished off my Cytomax.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Cardio. For some reason my legs were fine but I couldn't get my cardio to push. It was usually the other way around.

Event comments:

This race has always been a blast to do with friends. The volunteers were great and the course can tailor to beginners and veterans. Regardless if I'm training through or not for a different event, I will always attempt to attend this race.




Last updated: 2009-08-10 12:00 AM
Running
00:46:29 | 04.97 miles | 09m 21s  min/mile
Age Group: 16/85
Overall: 76/1990
Performance: Good
Did not run with an HRM.
Course: The course was basically the same as the previous years, though the rain made the streams crossings a little deeper. The start was at the beach and we had to make our way along the sand with the ocean to our left. During this leg were 2 burms we had to cross. I placed myself a little closer to the front and towards the inside of the first turn. I knew once the signal went off, it would be a mad dash through the sand with everyone trying to get to the left side to grab some wet sand to run on. I stayed on the right with less traffic and put up with the soft sand. I was also banking on the first couple of burms taking out some eager beavers. The run through the sand wasn't bad. The week prior, I spent a couple of hours running 3-4 miles through the sand at the Oceanfront so pacing wasn't a problem. Overtaking the burms was paced as well and since everyone was on the left side, there were a few bottlenecks on the burm. The right side had very low traffic and I was able to cross over with no slowdowns. After the second burm, the field thinned out as I had hoped and I was able to get on the wet side and cruise at my own pace. Getting off the sand, we jumped on the next leg which were a good mix of trails and some more sand. Not much overtaking was being done here since the trails were single tracks and most people were sapped from the sand and burms. We hit some flats and got to a small hill and I was able to gain ground at this point, especially on the downhill segment. The first water crossing came at this point and was much deeper than last year. I noticed my race bib was completely submerged and even saw some runners dive into the water and swim. Getting out of the water was hell. The sand that collected in my shoes were fine when they're dry and moving around but once they got wet, they became solid and heavy. I believe this was all within the first mile as well. The 2nd mile was mostly pavement and again I was able to either hold the pace or gain more ground. I passed one other runner but didn't see much of any other passing. The 3rd mile was back on the sand and had the wall. The wall, if I'm correct, was about 4 - 4 1/2 feet. It wasn't much and the top was carpeted this time. I remember last year or the year before, we would see runners slip at the top and fall over on the other side. On the other side of the wall, we met another water pit. This one slowed me down a bit and got passed by some runners but as we got to the sand again and one major climb, I was able to get those back. The final obstacle was a chicken wire crossing, except no chicken wire. They used ropes to simulate it. No one wants to see a $50 technical T get shredded. The "wires" were over another mud/water pit and low enough to force you on your hands and knees. The ones who went all out and didn't allow the ropes to touch their backs were easily submerged as they were down to their elbows. The others would crawl with their backs arching and allowing the ropes to slide over them. Although I got my knees gashed last year from rocks at the bottom and low crawling on my elbows and knees, I decided to do it again this year (Army side kicked in). Luckily no gashes so they must have listened to the complaints this year. Speaking of complaints, there were no volunteers yelling "Almost there" every 10' feet either. The finish was a straight shot and allowed enough room for spectators to cheer you on.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %1
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
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] 5

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2009-08-10 9:02 AM

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