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Whistlestop Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Ashland, Wisconsin
United States
Centurytel
34F / 1C
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 27m 6s
Overall Rank = 839/1105
Age Group = 40-44
Age Group Rank = 69/100
Pre-race routine:

Warning: probably more detail than you're used to since I was an 'observer' (pacing my wife).

Drove up to Ashland on Friday night with Eric and Cheryl. Stopped in Duluth at Baja Billy's and had lunch with a friend who used to live in Farmington. Had a fish taco...mmm... Checked into the B&B and headed down to the convention center to pick up packets. East Bay (out of Wasau) was having a 50% off clearance on training gear. My wife bought 3 shirts, pants and shorts. She was estatic...I bought a pair of running pants because I didn't bring any, and temps at race start were predicted to be low (below 40). Stood in line to pay for the clothes and talked to a guy in his 60s that had just spent 90 days in jail. He had already done a dozen marathons this year and typically runs in the 3:35 range. I hope to do that when I'm 60...maybe not the jail part, though.

Ate dinner at the Deepwater Grille...pasta. Played a few games back at the B&B (Farkel) with the group, then went to bed around 10pm.
Event warmup:

Breakfast at 6:30am. Toast, boiled eggs and cranberry juice for breakfast. Drove downtown with Cindy, Fred and Eric to catch the bus up to the start. Hit the port-o-john, then we PICKED UP OUR TIMING BANDS. That was goofy. Have never had to pick up timing bands AT the race start for a half mary. Met up with Scotty, Aaron and Mark in the warming house. It was COLD (34 degrees), so I was wearing an Underarmor vest, LS tech shirt, jacket and running pants, but decided to ditch the jacket and running pants at the gear bag drop-off (good decision...it got up to 54 by the end of the race). Saw Gretchen at the start.
Run
  • 2h 27m 6s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 11m 14s  min/mile
Comments:

Great run. We had a great time. I had a great time joking around with the volunteers and spectators, and Cindy KNEW that running her pace was not a big effort for me. She did Sports Beans, sports drink and water. I did Gu and/or part of a PowerBar every 30 minutes, plus water and sports drink. Cindy and I both stopped for a bathroom break at about mile 8. This was kind of fun, 'cause after she was done, I told her to run ahead, I'd do my business then catch up. I'd run a fairly fast pace (around 7 min/mi) until I caught her, then slow down to her pace. Never again will I get the chance to run that pace in a half marathon! :):) I also took breaks to empty my shoes of small pebbles at about miles 5 and 9 and did the 7 min/mi pace thing...fun...Cindy felt great until mile 10. I kept her at about pace (10:40), but she struggled the last 5K. I kept pushing her (enough so she wouldn't get too upset).

Cindy and I ran into the finish line holding hands (awww...). She was elated for having finished. I think she was close to tears, but I'll let her make the call on that one. She doesn't typically blog, so I guess you'll never know...my Garmin said 2:25:43...I trust my Garmin more...funny how it was more than a minute different than the chip time...
What would you do differently?:

Maybe wear gaiters to keep the rocks out.
Post race
Warm down:

Gave Cindy a BIG hug, told her how proud I was of her. We picked up our race jackets. These things were pretty nice...long sleeve tech material, red (fast), collared and half zip. Cindy was so excited about the jacket that we picked it up first, THEN headed back to the food tent. Cookies, water...Cindy felt a bit dizzy, so we sat down for a bit before we picked up our gear bag. We drove back to mile 23 to cheer on Mike in his marathon. I ran with Mike for about a 1/4 mile, then ran a fast mile (6:50 pace) back to the bed and breakfast.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Nothing. Main objective was to pace my wife and make sure she finished. We had a great time...

Event comments:

Great event. Cindy had a great experience and wants to do this race again next year...




Last updated: 2007-03-02 12:00 AM
Running
02:27:06 | 13.1 miles | 11m 14s  min/mile
Age Group: 69/100
Overall: 839/1105
Performance: Good
Most of Cindy's splits were between 10 and 11:43. We walked every other mile.
Course: Beautiful course on a beautiful day. Chipped rock on an old railroad bed (flat) underneath a canopy of trees.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? No
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Below average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4

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2007-10-15 3:53 PM

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Pro
4541
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A farming town in MN
Subject: Whistlestop Half Marathon


2007-10-15 3:59 PM
in reply to: #1009115

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Extreme Veteran
366
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"the wave", iowa
Subject: RE: Whistlestop Half Marathon
nice job!  way to be "in-race" support!  congrats to you and the wife!
2007-10-15 5:55 PM
in reply to: #1009115

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Elite
3687
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Subject: RE: Whistlestop Half Marathon
Way to go Sal and Cindy! I'm not so sure Kelly and I could run together for 13 miles and still be holding hands in the end.  Sounds like you had a great time.
2007-10-16 9:17 AM
in reply to: #1009115

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Expert
957
5001001001001002525
Charlotte, NC
Subject: RE: Whistlestop Half Marathon
Great job....it's always hard to hold back from how you want to race, but I'm sure it meant a lot to your wife to have you supporting her.
2007-10-16 12:24 PM
in reply to: #1009115

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Master
1381
1000100100100252525
Clifton, NJ
Subject: RE: Whistlestop Half Marathon
so cool that you were there for your wife and had fun in the process! congratulations to you both
2007-10-16 8:59 PM
in reply to: #1009115

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Pro
4216
20002000100100
Sous Mon Diadème
Subject: RE: Whistlestop Half Marathon

Awwww... that's so sweet .  I know it meant a lot to Cindy to have you out there supporting her and I'm sure it was a great moment for you to cross that finish line with her. 



2007-10-17 4:43 PM
in reply to: #1009115

Subject: ...
This user's post has been ignored.
2007-10-17 6:22 PM
in reply to: #1009115

Subject: RE: Whistlestop Half Marathon
Holding hands at the finish line???? That's the sweetest thing ever!
2007-10-17 7:38 PM
in reply to: #1009115

Champion
7163
500020001002525
Verona WI--Ironman Bike Country!
Subject: RE: Whistlestop Half Marathon

Nice job making your wife's dream a reality.  I did the full last year (it snowed) so it looks like you had better weather this year.

2007-10-19 6:05 AM
in reply to: #1009115

Master
1397
1000100100100252525
Granvile, Ohio
Subject: RE: Whistlestop Half Marathon

Way to go!  Sounds like you both had a great day.

I gotta know..... What was the guy in jail for?

2007-10-19 6:43 AM
in reply to: #1014948

Pro
4541
2000200050025
A farming town in MN
Subject: RE: Whistlestop Half Marathon
tnickerson - 2007-10-19 6:05 AM

Way to go!  Sounds like you both had a great day.

I gotta know..... What was the guy in jail for?


Don't know.  Figured at the time, it wasn't best to ask.  He does ride a Harley and runs all his races shirtless.  Even last Saturday at a 36 degree start.  I didn't flinch about that too much, but Cindy must have thought that was odd.   I guess she's starting to get used to the fact that most marathoners are a little wild and crazy to begin with.

Do you want his number?...(kidding)

 



2007-10-19 6:44 AM
in reply to: #1012787

Pro
4541
2000200050025
A farming town in MN
Subject: RE: Whistlestop Half Marathon

spokes - 2007-10-17 4:43 PM I have to give this RR a big "awwwwwwwwww"

More cowbell, spokes!  Love the new avatar...

 



Edited by sparco 2007-10-19 6:53 AM
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General Discussion Race Reports! » Whistlestop Half Marathon Rss Feed