Hey all. I finished my first of two HMs in May. Today was the Indianapolis Mini and here is my report. I didn't really race it as I am doing a Low Heart rate program and this was still in my base building. My normal avg HR is supposed to stay below 138 but I pushed it to 143 for today to see what I could do. Race conditions today were perfect. At the start it was 52 and slightly overcast. If anyone has run this, you are packed in very close. There were 35000 entrants as usual and it looked like all of the showed for the run. We started down Washington and it was a challenge to control my tempo as I wanted to just take off. But restraint was the phrase of the day. The mini was really adamant about the Ipod thing so they increased the number of bands and we hit the first band before we even hit the half mile point. Hearing Stepenwolf's Magic Carpet Ride was an interesting start. The first miles went well and I managed to control my heart rate well. It was much more challenging than I thought since being in a race was willing me to run faster. I skipped the first three water stops. Probably not a great idea, but since this was a training run and I didn't really think it would matter. The bands and volunteers were great and made the first miles move quick. There were many spots where congestion made keeping pace a challenge at least through the turns. It also massively rained the night before the run and lots of puddles were crimping the corners. Not a big irritant but something of note. Passing mile five reminds you that the Indy Motor Speedway looms ahead. We pass through an initial gate and down a tunnel wth a nice little uphill and you are inside the Brickyard. Ironically, this year I hit the entry at about 1:03 and we see the two Kenyans battling for the win on a big jumbotron. We haven't even hit 6 mile mark and they are looking for a water bottle and a couple of cookies. Ugh. Mile 6 breaks you onto the track. Pace is good and sun is starting to peak out. There are signs everywhere that no Gu or cups on the track but I could stack a ten foot high pile of the discards. Its a silly rule which no one seems to heed. ANyway, mile 7 and 8 are on the track. its crowded and the inclines are not that much fun on the legs, but it is great to cross the bricks at the speedway finish. As we depart the speedway we have a little over four miles remaining. This is the boring part of the run but there are more bands and lots of people with cow bells cheering the runners. My pace is starting to pick up a little. I wanted to see if I could maintain the speed without pushin too hard. So far so good. We hit the 12 mile mark and there is the beer table. Yippee. Its probably Keystone but who cares. Its free and tastes good going down. The last part of the run follows the White River and with the sun wide awake now, downtown Indy looks great. One last turn onto New York and the last mile is in sight. It has a small downhill that gets my going and I decide to kick a little to test the engine. I ran my HR up to 150 and finished strong. I hope I managed to keep my 143 target. After crossing the finish line with a wave to the camera, I take a look at the Polar to see the results. 143 on the button and I feel like I still have another 10 miles in me. My review is that the LHR seems to be working. I passed lots of people n the last five mles and had lots of people pass me. Once I'm ready to really race, I should be able to hit my goals. Lots of base left to build but I like the results so far. Overall more than 30000 fiished the race and the winner finished in 1:02. Wow! This is a great race and well managed. They had more than 20 bands on the roads. Water stations everywhere and lots of cheering viewers. If you haven't run this one, you should at least do it once. Running the track is a geat experience and usually the weather is very good for a run. Its flat and is a good chance to PR if you can navigate the crowds. Most runners stick with their assigned corrals and that helps. Thats it and I'm ready for Geist HM which runs on May17th. My results are: Mile Time Avg Peak 1.10:02 141 144 2. 9:25 146 150 3. 9:34 142 144 4. 9:32 142 146 5. 9:35 142 144 6. 9:43 143 145 7. 9:54 142 144 8. 9:15 143 146 9. 9:28 144 147 10. 9:24 143 146 11. 9:03 145 149 12. 9:06 144 150 13. 8:37 148 155 13.1 8:10 150 150 Overall 2:03:37- avg pace 9:26/mi and I feel great.

Nice job. Looks like you are building up a nice mileage base. Keep doing what you are doing and it'll only get better. Good luck with your next HM.

Great Job!!