I've got the New Jersey Marathon in five weeks and this is my predictor race.  As such, this was important to me.  Savin Rock HM in West Haven CT, right on the Connecticut shore.  This was my third time running this race.  My previous times were 1:48:03 (2012) and 1:38:23 (2014).  Today was all about the hills and the weather.

Profile:

The weather today was SNOW.  We got about 4" last night and it snowed the entire race.  Honestly though, given the crap I've had to run in all winter, I really didn't care about snow today.  It became a minor issue late in the race, but otherwise was just another day.  I was just happy there was no wind, which is rare for a race right on the shore.

I had a couple of goals in mind.  A PR would have been great, if even by a second (1:34:29).  My PR was on a much easier course.  If a PR wasn't in the cards, a course PR would be nice.  I predicted to DW that I'd run a 1:34: xx with a small PR.  I didn't taper for this, but I eased up on the intensity all week.  I ran the same volume but everything was easy(ish).  I did cut back by about 6-7 miles the last two days, if you want to call that a taper.

Coach said to ignore my pace and run by feel.  He's been preaching it this entire cycle.  So, I kept that in mind all race.  My strategy was to attack this race and don't cross the finish line with any regrets.  I was determined to run a good race.  I ran a one mile warm up, ate a gel, chatted with some guys I knew, and was ready to go.  After a 10 minute delay, we were off.

Miles 1-4:  I started further back than I should have...I wasn't thinking.  So I had to bob and weave a bit the first mile.  Once I got clear and got some space, I settled in.  From miles 2-13, I was passed by one person.  "Run by feel"...I had to keep telling myself that, although I was still checking the Garmin.  My pace was fast but it felt good.  The first four miles feel completely flat, though the profile shows some slight incline.  Despite snow falling, the roads were just wet.  The town did a great job clearing the course.  As per usual, I had a running tally in my head of how far ahead of my PR I was.  PR pace was 7:13...just stay ahead of it.  Through four miles, I had a 70 second cushion.  The hills were coming though...

Miles 5-9:  The hills.  I just wanted to get through these middle miles without giving too much time back.  Hills are still my weakness, though I am getting better at them.  The last two times I ran this race, I lost a lot of time here, it wrecked my legs, and I faded to the finish.  Today I lost a total of less than 10 seconds during these miles.  I ran these five miles hard, knowing they'd make or break my race.  A couple of times I thought I was starting to fade, then noticed my pace was 6:40 (derh).  I really didn't know how my legs would respond once I got through the hills and was hoping I could hang on.  I was still ahead of my PR.  The snow started to pick up too.  The roads now had a coating of snow on them and slush began to accumulate.  There was no clear road to run on.  I was squishing through light slush and had some occasional slippage underfoot.

Miles 9-13.1:  The race course sets up for a fast finish if you've got anything left after the hills.  As it turns out, I had plenty left.  When mile 10 buzzed off at 6:52, at that point I knew I was going to PR.  I was getting faster.  "Run by feel, keep the effort up, don't give up."  That became very hard.  As I saw my heart rate start to dip a little in mile 11, I kicked the effort back up.  I started to feel a little pukey, and if I puked, so be it.  I realized in mile 11 that a sub-1:33 was in my sights and I wanted that.  A plow passed me and sprayed me with slush.  Thanks, mang,  But it gave me a slush-free final mile.  A small race to begin with, in this weather there were a mere couple dozen people clapping at the finish, and it is much appreciated.  The clock read 1:33 and a few seconds.  Net time put me under 1:33.

Official time 1:32:58.  That's a 1:31 PR, on a tough course, in the snow.  I am THRILLED.  I really, really did not expect to run a sub-1:33 HM going into this.

OA 21/400

AG 4/21 (shit, man!)

So what this tells me about my marathon is that I've got some work to do.  I think I'm still on the outside looking in as far as a BQ goes, but this also isn't the best course for a predictor.  I think I am very close.  Either way, I'll just be happy to run a good marathon, BQ or no BQ.  I also think I have a good shot to go under 1:30 in the HM on a faster course in better weather.  And I am chomping at the bit to run a 5K and 10K.

Splits.  By a few seconds, my last four miles were faster than my first four miles.

Trinkets:

Thank you for your time and attention.  Now back to your regularly scheduled internet.

Holy crap, you are fast. Those hills really appeared to be no problem for you. Keep training on them and you will come to appreciate them on race day. Going down the steep ones is a different story but going up is great. Good stuff, Baboon, I am super happy for you.

Thanks, Klompus!  It's funny how the splits through the hills look good on paper, but when you are running up them it feels like you are crawling.  The downhills with a light coating of snow were definitely tricky.  I could not run downhill as fast as I would have liked.

It looks like you have to jump off a cliff and climb back up between miles 8 and 9  Wow.

It is steep and there is a right hand turn.  With snow on the road, I had to go W-I-D-E around that turn!

 

It is steep and there is a right hand turn.  With snow on the road, I had to go W-I-D-E around that turn!

The snow makes it more impressive. I would be overly cautious of hitting slick spots--we had 2 inches yesterday, mostly on the grass and there were some spots of black ice when I was warming up today.

Impressive running in snow. And I admit, I'm a little jealous of your new PR. Congrats!

Great job Baboon!  Congrats on your new PR. I'm sure your coach was pleased too. He will want a bonus.

Good luck on your BQ attempt. Looking forward to hearing about it.

You're on my ass boyeee, and this just in; you're gonna get dat ass too!

Wow! When you posted your time in the dailies, I didn't realize it had been in these conditions. Double congrats on an excellent time!