Awood, great report and a great race for your training conditions. I actually feel so bad about the way I felt, not sure I want to do a RR. But that wouldn't be fair to myself, or all the rest of RA. I'll start on it tonight. I was a great pleasure to meet you and Marla, and MIL.
Hopefully your winter training struggles will pay off in others ways as the season progresses, and hats off to you for racing with a back issue. That takes stones!
Congrats Awood!
Great race, especially considering the lousy winter, the confidence-sapping 5Ks, and THAT HILL. Eek.
Very cool that you got to meet up with Hog also, well done!
race obsessed
Very cool race Awood and a mother of a hill to boot. Wow, 300+ feet in 2 miles is no joke.
That is a damn cool finishers medal.
Great RR, Awood.. Knowing abt the back problem and a less than ideal winter, you did great with that time.. So happy that you could do a FE with hog.. Hope Marla got better..
2015 Races
2XU HM - 29 Mar
Smaller By The Day
Outoftheblue - Thanks. It was definitely one of the tougher races that I've run.
Jerry - Thanks. I highly recommend it as a destination race. I'll let you know when registration opens up again, but only after I've reserved my spot...lol
HobbitLegs - It is odd when you see that tiny downtown area, and realize that there isn't a single saloon. That area is screaming for one. That's okay though. They gas/grocery store has cold beer, and as long as you take it back to where you're staying you can drink it there.
nova - I threw the report together during my lunch break. I'm surprised that it's legible..lol
Ginny - I'm glad that I didn't let it keep me from running too. To be completely honest, if I didn't have family coming in from Washington and a planned FE I might have DNS'ed the race all together. The drive to Lynchburg is what scared the crap out of me. I'm glad I did it.
Happylilly - I agree :-) I'm pretty encouraged. I had a spring HM last year, and it wasn't hilly or as fast. So, I'm hoping for PR's this summer and fall.
PADRunner - They were talking about "the rope" at the starting line just to mess with everybody. I thought that all of the hyperbole had prepared me for it, and then I felt it in my legs and realized that my head was prepared but my legs were still surprised.
She Can - Thanks! I have to give some credit to a runner in Tacoma, WA. I ran past her on a steep hill in the third mile of a 5K. It was stteeeeppp and seemed to go on forever. She walked parts of it, and that's how I passed her. As soon as the road flattened out, she closed the distance and blew past me. I didn't stand a chance. So, when I saw Whiskey Hill, I remembered that.
Improvements
Weight 100 pounds lost
5K 31:02 Sept. 2012 / 23:36 Sept. 2013 (Same Course)
10K 48:59 April 2013
HM 2:03:56 Nov. 2012 / 1:46:50 March 2013
MARATHON 3:57:33 Nov. 2013
hog4life - I'm pretty sure that you'll have another crack at this race next year, and at least you didn't tax your legs too bad for your half this weekend. Thanks again for taking some time to hang out afterwards.
LRB - Thanks! I think I'm ahead of where I was at this time last year, even with the rough winter. If I get this back straightened out (and I will), I should have a good racing season.
Jay - Thank you. It was totally worth it.
Sly - The medal is definitely cool. I get the feeling that they try to do everything just a little different there. At packet pick up, you get a quarter zip pullover and a bib. If you finish, there's also a pair of custom "Oak Barrel" Swiftwick socks, and a hat or visor to go along with the killer medal made out of Jack Daniels barrels.
Bin - Thank you. Marla is getting better slowly but surely, and my back is still improving. Don't tell anybody, but I'm considering another race this weekend. It's just a 5K, but it's only $25.
Caretaker/Overlook Hotel
Where's the beer & man hole cover-sized pancakes??? (That's how we do it out here in Cali)
Excellent job, I must say!! Heck, you almost make me want to run another half again.
Randy
I opted for beer and pizza, but when you have 1500 runners in a town of 5000 people you eat what you can lol. Had to take the beer to the house because of dry county laws
Where's the beer & man hole cover-sized pancakes??? (That's how we do it out here in Cali) Excellent job, I must say!! Heck, you almost make me want to run another half again.
Mmmmm...beer
Great job! Like I said in Mitch's RR, I'd really like to run this next year, hopefully I can make it happen. That hill will probably kill me tho, we don't have any hills around here!
-Dave
My running blog
Goals | sub-18 5k | sub-3 marathon 2:56:46!!
I don't have hills either...lol I'll keep an eye on registration for next year. We'll want to sign up early. They had 1400 registered this year, but I doubt they will open up more spots next year. That little town was packed. It would be awesome if we all signed up though.
There's a bridge here that everyone uses for hill training, it's 169ft in a lil over a mile, that's the best we can do. Actually, there's also Mt. Trashmore (actual name lol), it's a reclaimed garbage dump that was turned into a park, people do hill work there too, it's about 60ft with some sides that are pretty steep. All of our hills are man made. lol
Don't call me Buttercup!
Congrats!! That hill would have killed me. Seriously I would have just laid down and waited for someone to come pick me up. LOL
I love those finisher medals, very very cool. You certainly earned yours!!
Slow and steady wins the.... wait a second! I've been lied to!
Di2.0 -Thanks! I'm actually surprised at how good I felt after the hill. Definitely tough, but worth it.