Montreal Rock'n Roll half marathon, September 28th 2014, RR

This is my second half marathon. I have raced the same course last year. It’s in my home town. All the races I’ve done so far were in my home town. Last year, on my debut HM, I finished with a time of 1:38:47. I was very happy with that. It was an A+ goal.

This year, I raced a 10K in May. Finished in 42:24. I suspect the course might have been short, but since there were sharp turns, that can also explain the difference with my Timex GPS. McMillan predicts a 1:34:31 half for that 10k time, whereas Daniels has it at 48.5 VDOT and 1:34:02 half time. Given that I have trained in the past 4 months (since May), my goal time for this year’s half is sub 1:34. It looks a bit fast to me when I look at the number, but my training and past results say it’s a reasonable goal. Then again, what if the 10k course was short (Timex had it at 9600m)? And today was going to be pretty warm and very sunny…

C Goal : PR (< 1 :38 :47)

B Goal : sub 1:35

A Goal : sub 1:34

A+ Goal : sub 1:33

On this course, a positive split is almost inevitable. The race starts on a bridge and it’s downhill right from the start. Then we hop between two islands (bridge between each), go around the F1 track, then another bridger and finally get to the mainland (actually Montreal is also an island...). Othen than the bridges, it's been pretty flat up to here. But the race finishes on « Le Plateau ». So at maybe 50% of the race we start going up slowly. There are two pretty big hills. One in old Montreal and then the infamous « côte Berri » (Berri hill) which is right after the 19 km marker. That’s a killer. Once atop the hill, it’s still uphill (more gently) to the finish line. Last year I underestimated the part after « côte Berri ». I started my kick too soon (I thought there was about 500m to the finish, but there was still much more to go) and finished grimacing and almost doubled over.

So the strategy going into today’s race was to bank 1 minute before « Côte Berri », on top slowly gain my tempo back again, then hold a reasonable tempo going up the gentle slope, losing a few seconds being ok, and on the last stretch, have enough energy for a nice strong kick. I set my watch on 21.1 km, 1:33:59, and I went in the race with the mind set that I would follow the virtual pacer or die trying. An A+ goal would be to finish 1 minute ahead of my virtual pacer. 4:27/km average is what I needed for my A-Goal.

Yeah, right!

I was in corral 2, but was a little timid to go up front. There was traffic when the race started and my foot hit someone else’s foot. No damage. I hate race starts. Then I went out fast. I was going for my A goal, but wanted to keep the door open for the A+ goal. The start is downhill, so I needed to bank time for the 2^nd half which is uphill.

4:28 - 1

4:16 - 2

4:20 - 3

Going well. A bit fast but I feel great. I can keep this up. Then, beginner’s mistake, a shoe lace got untied. FFS. Considered leaving it like that, but decided to stop, and tie it. Then when I started back, I kept thinking that I should have taken 1 extra second to do it proper as I rushed it and it was not perfect. I was cursing myself for such a beginner’s mistake and had to talk myself out of thinking about it and enjoy the race.

4:28 – 4 (shoe lace)

4:20 - 5

I was starting to feel the 4:20 pace, and figured I should drop the A+ goal and secure my A-Goal. So 4:27/km it is. So for next few kms, nothing worth mentioning happened. I was just running at a steady pace. Business as usual.

4 :28 - 6

4 :26 - 7

4 :26 - 8

4 :28 - 9

4 :30 - 10

4 :30 – 11

4 :24 – 12

4 :28 – 13

Still feeling good but I’m thinking it’s a good thing I banked time because I’m pretty much at my limit, and there are hills coming up. All is still good, but it’s going to be tough.

4:10 – 14 (WTF???)

4:28 - 15

4:20 – 16

Then the first real hill came up. I don’t remember that it was this hard last year. My thighs became warm, I got « stomach cramps » (don’t know if that is what they’re called in English) side stitches on both sides, and although I was not wearing my HRM, my heart rate skyrocketed. Holy crap, it was hard running after that. I needed to slow down to catch my breath and get the cramps  stitches to pass, but at the same time I wanted to tough it out and finish in my goal time.

4:34 - 17

4:38 - 18

Shit, I was running slow, I was not catching my breath, the cramps stitches were not going away, and the « Berri hill » was still coming up. It was painful. I thought about DNFing, but decided to just finish the damn thing. To hell with all the goal times. So I really slowed down in the 19th km, and in the 20th km there was the hill. I was grimacing, holding my right side (the left cramp stitch passed with the slower 19th km). There are people in the hill encouraging the runners, and I’m usually a stoic runner with a slight smile on my face showing off how easy running is, but this time I was just grimacing and trying to hold on.

4 :50 – 19

4 :52 – 20

Only had 1.1 km to go and thought about the finishing kick, so I picked up the pace conservatively in the 21st km, to have juice left for a finishing kick. Started my kick at maybe 200 meters to go. Just as I passed the 21 km marker : Bang! A calf cramp. That has never happened to me before. I have 100m to go and am hopping ackwardly trying for a photo-finish kick! That must have been a pretty sight. But after 30-40m I was able to run correctly so I finished with a more conventional running form.

4:30 – 21

0:47 – 0.19 km (I mush have taken longer turns in parts)

I had not looked at my watch for a little while. I was solidly out of breath and a little dizzy. After maybe 30 seconds of very slow walking aimlessly my senses came back and was all right.

Unofficial finish time (Timex) : 1:34:43

A bit disappointed. Physically and mentally i gave it all I had, but it is the first time in my short racing career that the result is slower than what I expected. Bad preparation? Bad race strategy? Irrealist expectations? Maybe a little of all.

BTW My problem is not the time itself, but not living up to my own expectations. I thought I could do better today. That is all. I realize this is a pretty good time for a second half marathon

Mitch - I really like your photos, especially the one of you and Mrs. 4life on the trail.

A

Great job, Cy!

Awesome job Cyber!  I think yo did fab and a new PR..woohoo!

Mitch - those photos and report are awesome - you only get the Inaguaral Medal once

Short and sweet; sub 2 was achieved, the actual time is debatable.

Longer

This was my 11th half, and the 3rd time running this local race called the Huntsville Half Marathon. It's in Huntsville, Alabama and this was the 26th consecutive year. It's a cheap race at just $26 if you register early, and only has two price increases of $10 each time, so $46 is you wait till the last minute. The proceeds from this race are used for several different organizations that help the veterans that have served our country, so it's for a great cause. Thank you, to all who have served. And to those currently serving.

My training has been a little lack luster, if you will. In other words, it hasn't really been training at all, but more just running. I wouldn't call them all junk miles, but a big portion of them have been. I've tried to throw in at least one day per week with some sort of speed work, nothing real structured, just a few strides here and there, a few tempo miles, or some fast finishes. IMO, the longer tempo runs are a key in obtaining the speed and endurance to hold the faster paces for longer periods of time. I've also tried to keep my LR in the double digit range. I posted a little of this in my 10k RR from last weekend.

My only real goal for this race was to get a sub 2. Up until today, just 3 of my previous halves were less than 2 hours, with the other 7 being in the 2:01-2:08 range. I wanted to start around a 9:00 pace, and was hopeful that I wouldn't fade too much to loose the sub 2.

The race starts on a small 2 lane road, where 2 porta-potties are stationed. There are a whole bunch more over near the finish line, but as we neared the starting time, I didn't want to walk the few hundred yards over there, so I got in line. As we got closer to the start, the line was moving quite slowly, I debated just to run over and pee in a bush, but didn't. The opening comments were made, 12 people in front of me. The opening prayer was said, about 8 people in front of me. The National Anthem was sung, about 4 people in front of me......Crap, this is going to be close, and I really have to pee. These are the same porta-potties that are at the 2.5 mile mark, because you make a loop and then pass right back by here, but I couldn't wait that long. Ever been hydrating like there's no water left in sight? Well this was me, and I was dealing with the consequences. I bet I went to the bathroom at least 6 or 7 times in the last 1.5 hours leading up to this point. Okay, back to the suspense, the gun goes off, 1 person in front of me. The pack starts moving, and I finally get in. It was a chip timed event, so I new my time would start when I crossed the mat. As I came out, I must have been one of the last 30 people or so. I was a little concerned at how crowded it might be as I started passing people.

I was completely satisfied with this run, except for the fact that I had the numb foot thing, AGAIN! WTF! I stopped at mile 5 to adjust shoes and socks. When this happens, I just chock it up as a day that I had to fool with my socks. No big deal.

Splits are

8:45

8:40

8:44

8:39

9:57(sock)

8:17

8:38

8:40

9:20(took a long GU and water walk, checked OA pace and still good for sub 2)

8:38

8:41

9:26(mental fatigue, took a short walk, still good for sub 2)

8:41

9:03

Now the debatable time. When I crossed the finish line the clock was 1:58:07, but when I stopped my Garmin, I had 1:56:59, but 13.19 miles. After the results were posted, the timing folks said they had an issue with the chips, so they posted the gun time as everyone's official time. Kind of sucks, but I got my sub 2 either way. I'll put up some pictures when they get them up. I found out from a FB post after I done this report, that the magnetic strip was attached to the bibs vertically, instead of horizontally. they think this is what caused the issue.

I got to run with Traci again, and she did great  too.I'll let her tell you about it.

Thanks for reading,

Mitch

That is an awesome photo. I believe it when you say this was a fantastic race because you look so happy. Put a smile on my face, after slip sliding on the ice and snow for the last while.

Thanks for sharing, we need a bit of cheer up north, A

Tuscaloosa Half Marathon

March 7

2:12:10

This event was not about the race, but about the pleasure and excitement of helping Hank. You see, Hank has Cerebral Palsy just like TJ, and this was to be his first half marathon. His mom and sister were also running, but Hank said they were too slow, haha. I have had the pleasure of meeting a group of people through that race with TJ last year, called Ainsley’s Angels. Their mission is to help special needs kids and young adults with disabilities reach their goals. Even though they can’t walk, they have a strong will and the desire to be competitive and win, just like all the rest of us.

The Alabama Ambassador for Ainsley’s Angels paired me up with a lady named Amy. We met just minutes prior to the race, so we didn’t know too much about each other. I asked her what she was thinking we could push Hank to, and she responded with a 2:08, whereas in my mind, I was thinking 2:20.

If you have never had the chance to do this, you should really try it. It is very rewarding in a lot of ways. I read a comment from another lady that was pushing, that talked about how she was getting burned out, and that this really gave her a new desire to run.

There were a couple of things that I want to share about the experience; it’s really about the way Hank was responding to all of this.

• We were calling out the mile markers to make sure Hank knew where we were at. At every sign, he was throwing up his arms and high fiving anyone that would give him some. It seemed that his excitement grew with each marker, kind of like he knew we were making progress.
• At every water station, we slowed to see if Hank wanted/needed a drink. He shook his head no each time as to say, let’s keep going.
• We passed several cheering sections that had people banging on drums, and this really motivated Hank.
• We took a photo op at mile 10 to take a few selfies
• There was one section of downhill that I really needed to use the brakes on the stroller to keep from going too fast. I think we were clipping along in the mid 7:00’s and Hank was having a blast. During this section, I had tears in my eyes, wishing his mom and dad was there to see him.
• Just after we crossed the 13 mile mark, we transferred Hank to a walker, and he mostly used his own power to cross the finish line.

Here are a bunch of pictures.