It can also be a relief depending on how you look at these thngs. I mean once you have accepted that your A or B goal is gone there's nothing left but to hang tough and do your best.
It's funny, I have vivid memories from each race of the point where I fully realized that my goal time was not gonna happen, and there was nothing I could do about it. (Because it happened in all my races so far.) Do other people have this?
Dave
Former Bad Ass
I don't think I could run with a pacer. I start way slower than I finish and I run huge negative splits if I can breathe throughout the race. For those reasons, I can never be a pacer either. they would kill me.
Damaris
Well I have run in a billion races so no, but there are a few (mostly when the pace group drifts off) that stick out absolutely.
Dave, I have this weird habit of not looking at the actual accumulated time on my garmin. I just look at the splits individually. And since they are generally all over the place, I'm never certain of what is happening. I just do my best, and prefer not knowing the outcome. I only find out my finish time when I look up at the clock at the finish line. Of course, I already know beforehand whether things went well or if they went wrong. But I don't have a clue of the exact finish time. I look up on the big clock, then I look at my garmin for the chip time. On a few occasions, it has brought me some very pleasant surprises. Other times, the number on the clock is actually worse than I had suspected, but I think it's better that I found out at the end. I might have given up mentally otherwise.
PRs: Boston Marathon, 3:27, April 15th 2013
Cornwall Half-Marathon, 1:35, April 27th 2013
18 marathons, 18 BQs since 2010
I don't look at accumulated time mostly because it stops making sense the longer I run, and after mile 21 or 22 forget it. lol
I should try that. Then I don't have to struggle to do math in my head at mile 23.
Exactly! I remember once, in Hamilton, I reached the 23rd mile and looked at the accumulated time on my garmin, I was shocked to see 3:00 exactly. Only 3.2 miles to go. Then I started thinking "Julie, you've worked hard so far, harder than you had expected you would. It's ok if you take a few minutes to walk. You deserve them..." I finished the damn thing in 3:32:something. It took me 32 minutes to cover 3.2 friggin' miles!!!! It would have been better if I had NOT looked at my garmin.
I always try not to look at it. In Chicago, I did and for some reason I thought I was finishing way later than I did.
I won math titles in HS. Sniff.
I should have specified I am referring only to my 4 marathons. (As I have met or exceeded my goal in every other race!)
Yeah this is me too. Kicking myself for not doing a better job looking at accumulated time on Sunday, since if I could possibly have cut off 30+ sec, I would have made it 3:39: xx instead of 3:40: xx.
I should have specified I am referring only to my 4 marathons. (As I have met or exceeded my goal in every other race!) Yeah this is me too. Kicking myself for not doing a better job looking at accumulated time on Sunday, since if I could possibly have cut off 30+ sec, I would have made it 3:39: xx instead of 3:40: xx.
See, things like that make no difference to me. I have two 3:40:something and I was hugely happy when I got them. It never crossed my mind that it would mean more if the numbers were 3:39:something. They are just numbers...
Seven Deadly Shins
I only look at the elapsed time if I have a pace bracelet with mile splits. Otherwise, I just try to keep each lap/mile pace at or under target. It's a lot easier than doing math late in the race.
My brain stops working anyway around Mile 20 in a marathon. It's a mental sport, you know, so we're all insane.
I have two 3:40:something and I was hugely happy when I got them.
He should be too but has been hanging around the wrong damn crowd this year.
talking about "old ladies' ... this is freakin' inspiring:
http://www.tcsnycmarathon.org/about-the-race/pro-athletes/13-years-after-marathon-debut-in-nyc-kastor-aims-high
In reality, I suppose maybe also not as big a deal to me as I tend to think it would be. In the HM I did 6 weeks earlier, I really wanted to break 1:40, and ended up with a big negative split and strong kick to finish at 1:39:51. Which of course I was pretty psyched about, but it turns out I still say I ran a 1:40 because it seems ridiculous to call it a 1:39.
I only look at the elapsed time if I have a pace bracelet with mile splits. Otherwise, I just try to keep each lap/mile pace at or under target. It's a lot easier than doing math late in the race. My brain stops working anyway around Mile 20 in a marathon. It's a mental sport, you know, so we're all insane.
I had big ideas going into the race, but you get into it & it all kind of falls apart. I was even thinking about using manual lap at the actual mile markers to be more accurate. Ha ha as if those seconds would've mattered. (Good thing I didn't as there were a few mile markers I never saw.) And yeah in the last few miles I don't even want to look at my watch.
Maybe as time passes I may appreciate it more. I just feel I could've done a few things differently/better. And as you know with a marathon unlike a shorter race, you can't just turn around & try again in a couple weeks. WAIT, SOME PEOPLE CAN.
People, what's with the math in your head? Don't you own expensive Garmin watches with gazillions of features? Surely you have a virtual pacer feature or something like that! No? After all the basic features (time, distance, pace), that is the most important feature to me.