I had a great 15k. I stuck to my 9:00 pace for probably the first 7 miles, then picked it up at the end and finished with around an 8:48 pace for the entire race. First time I’ve finished any race below a 9-minute mile in years. Hopefully, I’ll be able to bring the same pace to my half-marathon in May. I would love to break my previous PR of 1:57. I’ll need to run under a 9:00 to do it.
What wasn’t so great was what happened with my training partner before the race. Reminded me why I usually train and race alone, although it has been great having someone to train with through the winter. Here’s what happened:
Friday: I go to pick up our timing chips & shirts and find that he forgot to register. So I pay $40
(cash only
) to register him.
Saturday, he calls me and says that he’s been sick all week and isn’t sure he’ll race. I tell him to let me know in the morning what he’s doing, since I’ll have to take the subway in instead of getting a ride with him. I have always taken the train to races in Central Park, but he prefers to drive.
Sunday, I text him when I get up around 7:00, asking what he’s doing. I’m an early bird and I like to be at the race site at least an hour before the start. He finally writes back at 8:00 or so
(I need to leave at 9:00
) to say he’s not sure and he’ll let me know. I say, “Ok. Let me know by 9.” He calls at 9:20 to say he’s too sick and he’s not racing. I say sorry and run out the door.
I’m literally half a block from the subway station and he calls my cell to say he’s going to HTFU and run. “I’ll pick you up at 10:15”, he says.
(Race starts at 11:15
). I say, I don’t think that’s enough time. How about 9:45? He moans about how he still has to eat something and so on and we finally agree on 10am.
(At that point, the voice in my head is telling me to just say I’ll meet him at the race, but I ignore the voice. Never ignore the voice.
). He finally picks me up at 10:10
(T-minus 70 minutes to race start
) and his 3-year old daughter is in the car. “I just have to drop her at a birthday party,” he says. Finally, at 10:15 or so, we’re finally on our way to Manhattan
(t-minus 60 minutes
). Aaaaaand it’s Greek Independence Parade day. So half the side streets are closed and there’s even less parking than there usually is on race day. I suggest a parking lot, he doesn’t have his wallet and neither do I.
Finally, after circling for 25 minutes, and only 5 minutes before the start, he tells me to get out and he’ll park by himself. I don’t argue, since I’m fuming at this point. By the time I stash my bag, and run to the start line, the race has already started and I jump into the already-moving horde of runners. At that point I realize that I’ve forgotten my chapstick, gum, gu, and forgotten to program my Garmin—all the stuff I like to do in the minutes before the race.
Miraculously the race goes well. I finish, get dressed and wait for 20 minutes for him by baggage. He finally shows up….with a group of people with him. Surprise! His friends have surprised him at the finish line and are taking him out to brunch to celebrate, and therefore, he’s not driving back to Brooklyn, so I end up taking the train home. Luckily, I had my subway pass—I almost didn’t bring it with me, since I didn’t think I’d need it.