Today was my third "legitimate" shot at my 'Dream Goal' of sub 1:30:00. The closest I've come is a 1:31:26 at the LI Half back in 2008. Five months after the LI Half, in Oct 2008, I came down with a nasty bout of ITBS and as a result did a very minimal amount of running for 4 months, and ended up running a 1:37 at this Half Marathon last year, in 2009. Since last November I've been methodically building my Long Runs toward this Race with the goal of trying to go sub 1:30. Today was a long time coming: My first legit shot at the infamous sub 1:30 in two full years.

I bid good luck and farewell to Mike and Bill, and lined up in the first row. The race started and from past half marathon experience (this is my 9th half marathon I believe) I know that I'm better off running a few faster miles from the get-go and 'banking time'; rather than running my Goal Pace exactly (6:48 was my Goal pace) and then trying to hold it at the end, and possibly needing to run faster in order to make up any slow miles. I ticked off an easy 6:34 first mile, followed by a 6:49 6:50 & a 6:30. We had tailwinds at this point and I new that at the turn-around, about 6 miles out, that the headwinds would slow me, so I was okay running a little bit fast. I avg'd 6:40's for the next 3 miles (I'm executing the plan perfectly!).

Around 5 miles in I caught up to and started running with a guy named Eric who was fading and he said he wanted to run with me. Hey, the more the merrier. We talked about kids, our jobs, and then the headwinds hit. I didn't want to see my pace, and mile 9 was 7:21 followed by a 7:32! The headwinds were brutal at times, but hey we all enjoyed those tailwinds! I tucked my arms to my sides and focused on my Form and Running Economy.

At the 10-mile mark the digital pace clock read 1:09:20 ...I knew I was right there! We had one more mile of headwinds and then a final turn-around and tailwinds!! The entire time Eric pushed ahead and then I pushed ahead, we really fed off one another very nicely. At Mile 11 we threw down a 7:08 followed by a 7:02. With 1 mile to go I knew I was right at the cusp of the 1:30 cliff. At this point, I was afraid of looking at my Garmin, and I guessed that my last two miles were closer to 6:50 when they were actually just over 7.

With a mile left Eric told me to "Go!" And I did just that.

I left it all out on the course. I left every ounce of myself on that asphalt. I pushed DEEP into the Red Zone of horror and screams. I'd be suffering all Race, especially when running into the headwinds, and now it was time to just PUSH despite the PAIN. Lap 13 I layed down a solo 6:52 (a pace I've never come close to at Mile 13 of a half). The last couple hundred yeards my pace was 5:55. I gave it my absolute best, and then some.

Yes I would have loved to cross that mat at 1:29:XX but I still PR'd the half distance by 15 seconds. And more importantly, in the words of American Triathlete Michael Hall: "I did the best I could on this day."


I'm 175 lbs. Normally I race at 168. Given the 2 seconds faster per pound lost rule, if I can put down the Girl Scout cookies and Ben & Jerry's ice cream between now and May 2nd, I may just get my 1:29:XX at the Long Island Half. (Maybe by ratting myself out it'll keep me a little more honest with my dieting.) :)

I also ran in my old trainers. If I'd had my Speedstars on that are 4 oz lighter, maybe I run a few seconds per mile faster -- still wouldn't have been enough.

Right now, from playing landscaper and using a shovel to level out my backyard last Sunday, I have a Grade 1 Lower Back Muscle Strain. I've been in bed for the last 3 days. Given this fact alone, by God's Grace, I was happy to even run a single mile today.

Cheered on fellow runners and met up with Bill and Mike.


Weight.


As I've stated before this is a low-key, no frills race. There is no gatorade at the water stops, only water. There are maybe 20 spectators througout the entire course. Having said that... I love this race. For 20 bucks they shut down all of Nicolls road, just for me. It's flat and fast and it's a great Half to start the season and I always have a great time with my friends.