I was going to hold off for photos of this race, but I was asked to put together something for our company newsletter over lunch.  So, I decided I'd write it now, and if I find an good photos I'll add them later.

I ran the Brewers Mini (wish they would just call it a half marathon) as a tune up for my debut marathon on November 2nd.  So, I didn't have a true taper.  Instead I moved my tempo run to Monday and made it a progression run with the last 3 miles at or below HM pace.  I wanted to keep my normal tempo run, but there was only one day between that run and an 18 mile long run last weekend with 14 at marathon pace.  I had also had some foot problems on that run, and I've luckily found some relief in that area.  So, my mileage for the week was just below 50 miles, and I've been battling a cold.  I've been through this before a half marathon before though.  It just means more spitting and snot rockets on the course.  I'm not going to panic.

Friday, I ran a quick 3.5 miles in the morning, and went about my normal work day.  I had to hurry home from the steel mills, and grab my wife and our stuff and head to Milwaukee.  Chicago traffic sucks.  The trip took us over 4 hours, but we got there just in time for our packet pickup.   It was quirky from the word go, but a lot of fun.  We're at Miller Park, and in my packet is a bobble head of one their old managers.  We also got vouchers for tickets to a game next year (restriction apply).  It's a beautiful park though.

We got to our friends house, and they were wonderful hosts.  We snacked a bit, and got caught up before trying to get some sleep.  Sleep was delayed just a bit, as one of their boys is going through a growth spurt.  Oh well, you can't help that.  I'm 6'4".  I remember that was not easy.  It was a rough night for that young man.

We got up the next morning at 5 AM, and it took us a bit to get going.  I didn't bother waking my friends up.  I know they wanted to see me run, but I also know that a half marathon is not the greatest spectator sport on the planet.  They would get there, when they got there.  So, we let the little guy and his parents sleep and we headed out.  I didn't want to raid their fridge, and scavenge a snack.  So, we stopped a grocery store that opened at 6 and grabbed some stuff from the bakery and an energy drink.  It wasn't my normal pre-race meal.  So, I was very cautious about eating or drinking much at all.

We got to the stadium, and I immediately hunted down the first port-a-potty I could find.  We found the starting line with 20 minutes to spare.  I was in coral D.  I don't know what I put on my entry form to get in that coral, but it matched up well with my goal.  There was a pace leader in that coral with a 1:45 flag.  That works for me.

The wheelchairs started first, and I was starting to freak out a bit.  I hadn't had a warmup other than running to the toilet.  I train on a some of the flattest land in the country, and I've seen the elevation profile for this race.  Just before I could completely lose my mind, they let us loose on the course.

As usual, I calmed down quickly and just accepted the fact that this is happening.  Worst case scenario, you don't do well.  It's not like they shoot the guy who has a bad race.  So, I noticed the first part of the race was downhill.  That was nice of them.  Should I run faster than my goal, or just find my pace?  Why the hell am I worrying about it?  Just follow the guy with the flag....right!?

This is when I decided that I would have a better chance of running a good race if I started to think like a lazy man.  It's been my experience that you can tax yourself mentally, and physically over the course of a race.  So, as the 10K runners started to peel of at the 3/4 mile mark, I decided to take full advantage of the pacer and ignore my watch as much as possible.  He seemed to be on pace so far, and this coral all seems to have similar goals.  I focused on my form, breathing, etc.

One thing I wanted to work on this race was carrying less "stuff".  I didn't bring water, gels or anything.  So, just a little over a mile in I saw the first water station.  I don't feel like I'm going to need it, because the weather is just about PERFECT.  I think it was in the low 60's, with clear skies.  I grabbed a Gatorade anyway, because I want to make sure that in my upcoming marathon I can drink Gatorade from a paper cup on the run.  HEY...I coughed a little bit, but that didn't go too badly.

Early in the race, we headed up a overpass and I realized that the pacer is a bit faster uphill than I am.  I tend to close the distance on the downhill portion.  I took a mental note, and decided to let him run his pace on the hills.   This was good to know late in the 5th mile.  We ran over a bridge that was all uphill, went around a round-a-bout and then came down the bridge.  I found that I had the same distance between me and the pacer at the bottom coming down the bridge, as I did at the bottom going up the bridge.  Whatever distance he opened going uphill, I seemed to make up going down hill.  This is also where I decided that I was really happy with my downhill form as well.  I seemed to recover a lot coming downhill, even though I was passing a lot of people.  I had very little arm swing, my breathing was very relaxed, my feet were moving quickly, but my stride was short and fluid.  I didn't feel the impact that I expected.  So, I felt that I was doing something absolutely correct.  I chuckled to myself a bit, when I had the thought, "gravity likes big guys".

There's a stretch in the middle where I just kind of zoned out.  I know I looked at my watch when it beeped, and was pretty happy.  I know I passed a lot of cool stuff like the Harley Davidson museum, breweries and casinos.  I just can't put the details together for a race report.

At some point we were on a stretch of road that just felt like it was on top of Milwaukee.  I can tell you that the trip up there was grueling, but the view of Miller Park was quite amazing.  I got a chill a couple of times, and wondered if I wasn't in some sort of trouble and then realized that the breeze actually had a bit of a chill to it.  It wasn't just me.  For all of the hills, and burning muscles I had endured my legs seemed to be moving well.  Me breathing was relaxed.  I knew we were getting close, and I decided to try to push a bit harder.  Unfortunately, this extra effort didn't translate to faster times in the later miles.

One of the biggest results of my increased efforts was that my sinuses started to drain.  I apologize to every runner that was near me.  I made every effort to get to the side of the course for every snot rocket and every spit.  That was a lot of mucus.

At the next water station (the last one I stopped at), the runner in front of me came to stop.  I hit him pretty hard, and tried to get right back on pace.  I had 3 toes and a spot on my foot that were a bit sore from trying to stop before I collided with him.  I dropped an F-bomb and kept on moving.  The toes and my foot quieted down eventually, but the course became somewhat of a roller coaster ride.  I was constantly going from trying to power my way up a hill, and thinking it was the last one to flying down a hill.  One hill in particular ran past Plank Road Brewery, and I felt like I was going down the hill in a wagon.

I distinctly remember an uphill portion where I started seeing a LOT of people walking.  Of those that ran up the hill, some stopped to stretch on a guard rail at the top.  I'm kind of proud that as a representative of the flat lands of Indiana, I didn't do either.

One of the last hills, I passed a wheelchair racer.  People were yelling every bit of encouragement that they could, and I was really really impressed at the amount of upper body strength that this woman possessed.  It looked more like a weight lifting session, than a race.  By the time I reached the top, I wasn't sure if she was going to make it, but I was 100% sure that she wasn't giving up.  She had people there to spot her, and make sure she didn't go backwards, but she wasn't getting any help.

On the way down, I found out that she had indeed made it.  Her ability to steer through us runners at those speeds was equally impressive as her ability to get up that evil hill.  I also appreciate her ability to do that, and not just take us all out like bowling pins.

Finally, I can see the ballpark, and I'm hoping for a real morale boost when we run through the warning track and see ourselves on the big screen.  The entry into the ballpark was tricky, but exciting.  There were some sharp turns coming in and going out.  The surface on the warning track was kind of weird to be honest.  I don't know how to describe it.  It almost felt like cork under my feet.  Part of me wanted to high five the people in the stadium, but the other part of me know that I had kind of lost sight of the pace leader and really should focus on finishing this damn race.  Over the course of the roller coaster, I quit looking at my watch.

I exited the ballpark though the tricky little halls, and knew the finish was close, but that I'd have to go up one last incline.  I ran it as hard as I could, and headed for the finish.  I heard my wife call my name.  She had finished her 10K, and was waiting for me.  I put my arms out as I crossed the finish line to take in some of the breeze and looked directly at the race photographer.  I kind of hope that picture turns out well.  I finally stopped my Garmin, and saw that I had finished in an 1:46 and some change.  My wife said the 1:45 pacer was just ahead of me.  So, he must have been really close to his pace.

Official Results:

1:46:50

AG: 55 out of 296

Overall: 440 out of 4047

Men: 309 out of 1606

Overall, I'm very pleased.  My first HM was less than 11 months ago, and I ran 2:03:56.  This spring I ran a 1:54:07.  So, my training is paying off, and I dealt with a cold, hills and a collision to finish with a very big PR.  Beyond that, my debut marathon will be flat, have a full taper and I should be healthy.  So, I feel comfortable shooting for the time that I told St. Jude that I would finish in, which is 3:45.

Here are my splits according to Garmin:

1 - 8:03

2 - 8:00

3 - 8:01

4 - 7:52

5 - 8:07

6 - 8:07

7 - 8:02

8 - 8:03

9 - 8:17

10 - 7:49

11 - 8:29

12 - 7:51

13 - 8:22

14 - 8:04

Thank you for taking the time to read my race report, and thank you for all of the advice and support that has gotten me this far.

nice report and nice racing for you, your times are decreasing as you progress, way to go!  Congrats on your half!

Congrats on the huge PR.  Your pacing was very consistent.  Sorry about the collision.  Good thing you didn't get hurt.  This race was great mental and physical preparation for your upcoming marathon.  You should do great.

Nice race Awood! Job well done.

Wow! Nice RR and a big congrats on the PR. I will have to really speed up, or you'll need to slow down when we run together, haha. 

Those are some nice splits, Awood. That is what I would call consistent. With no taper that is still a quality race. I usually "zone out" as well. If you want, you can always drive to the Harley Davidson museum and check it out. With the training you have done, you are there to race the flippin' thing, not sight see. Novemer 2nd is almost here and you are going to kill it. Keep up the intensity and go for it!!!!

Nice job!  I have serious race envy with this race. I ran it last year and had a blast. It's in my backyard. Glad you enjoyed it and had a great race!  It was a beautiful day.

jeksca - I am giving serious thought to running it again next year.  It may not be the easiest HM, but I really enjoyed it and thought they did a great job of organizing it.

She Can - I hope you're right about the full marathon.  I am feeling pretty confident, but only time will tell.  I've been in races where there are wheel chair racers that start before the other runners, but I don't think I've ever caught up with them before.  They must be pretty fast.  I've never checked their times.