Notes
Weekly Mileage:
6/1-7: 11.4
6/8-14: 4
6/15-21: 0
6/22-28: 0
6/29-7/5: 11.4
7/6-12: 24.5
7/13-19: 21.0
7/20-26: 8.1
7/27-8/2: 0
8/3-9: 3.1
8/10-16: 13.1
8/17-23: 22.7 + 13.6 bike
8/24-30: 12.8 + 22.7 bike
8/31-9/6: 18.5
9/7-9/13: 37.6
9/14-9/20: 36.1
9/21-27: 38.2
9/28-10/4: 29.8
10/5-10/11: 23.7
The birth of Aidan, our son, has brought some dramatic changes to our lives and as a result, I've been squeezing in runs into my schedule instead of getting a consistent diet of morning runs. After finishing Boston this past spring, I had no illusions of having the time to train for a quality marathon effort in the fall. Likewise, it was time for a break after 10 marathons in a little over 3 years. The only events I had penciled in for the fall was the Reach the Beach Relay and the BAA Half Marathon. Both events gave me something to look forward and ensured that I wouldn't completely fall off the rails with respect to running.
The first half of the summer saw some pretty sparse running. I was running about 2-3 times a week, mostly just trying to enjoy my runs, and my monthly mileage was equivalent to what I was doing in a week during a typical marathon build-up. Here's a summary of my weekly mileage starting in June.
I didn't start consistently training until mid-August, and the only quality workouts I was doing were tempo runs. Reach the Beach really jump started my fitness, and I could tell by late September that I was in decent shape. This was turning into an interesting experiment on what was the minimum work I needed to put in a quality half marathon effort. Could I run well without only one quality interval workout? Could I get by on less than 40 miles a week? Can I even finish a half marathon without a single long run over 12 miles?
These were questions I pondered during the final week leading up to the BAA Half. I haven't even raced much this summer, having only jumped into the Marathon Sports 5 miler (link) and the Houghton Pond 6 mile trail race (link). I really had no idea what kind of shape I was in. The three tempo runs I did had gradually progressed from about 6:50/mile to a 6:30/mile, so I thought a 6:30 was a good starting point. I also did a pretty hard taper during the last week, as my legs were feeling pretty tired. So, by race morning my legs were feeling pretty fresh.
I had three goals going into the race:
1. Start off conservatively - since my fitness is an unknown, I didn't want to crash and burn.
2. Run with Sean - I've been doing a lot of runs with Sean Biggs recently, and have found that we're roughly in the shape. Having someone around will keep me honest at the beginning.
3. Try to go sub-1:25.
Start to Mile 3
Race day was blessed with perfect weather - low 40s, no wind, and none of the humidity that blanketed the start of last year's race. It was PR conditions, but I was in no shape to take advantage of it. Still, it was an opportunity to get in a quality race effort. I got to the start area with plenty of time, and still managed to be a little pressed for time getting bag to the storage area and body to the start line. I forgot to pick up my shirt when I first checked-in (chalk it up to post-paternity mental fog), so by the time I went back, they had run out of a large size.... not a big deal, I have a surplus of those shirts anyway. I felt reasonably loose and did a couple strides before settling into the start area with my BAA teammates. Sean and I agreed on starting with a 6:25-6:30 pace and we managed to chat it up for the first 2 miles. The first two miles were faster than anticipated, but my HR was still reasonable so I wasn't panicking. At some point along Pond Ave., I felt like I was pressing to stay with a pack, so I eased up as we hit the first aid station and the short uphill stretch leading up to Jamaica Pond.
Splits - 6:20, 6:20, 6:33
Mile 3-6
I usually hit a pretty nice groove along the Arborway and this year went according to plan. Sean and I admired the view of downtown Boston from the Forest Hills flyover as it was particular clear this year. It was also comforting to know that there would be no headwind on the flyover coming back. On the uphill leading into Franklin Park, I felt like Sean was losing contact as we were climbing. I saw the lead guy around 5.5 miles with Martin Fagan in hot pursuit, and then a couple minutes later, Josh Gordon in a tight pack with the lead women. The hairpin turn was further down Circuit Dr this year, because of a change in the finishing line. Due to the fancy resurfacing of Clemente Field, the finish line was moved back on to Park Dr. Shortly after the hairpin turn, I spotted a couple teammates (Sean O'Brien, Renee, and John Barrett) who looked comfortable. The gel stop came up quick and I had to wolf down my gel as I noticed there was no water station coming out of the zoo. Emerging from the dirt path, I did a quick self-assessment and found that my legs were feeling pretty fresh and I hadn't worked to hard to get to the halfway point.
Splits - 6:21, 6:29, 6:28
Mile 6-9
I picked it up a bit coming out of the zoo, and then relaxed into the downhill. Sean had regained contact and looked to be in good shape. We also picked up two more guys, one of which was a Community Running Association runner I recognized from New Bedford named Brian Hamill. We hit the mile 7 marker at a 7:15 split, and I wondered out loud whether anyone felt we had slowed that much on a downhill mile. I'm guessing the the race officials left the mile 7 marker at the same spot as last year, and this was confirmed when we passed over the flyover and hit the mile 8 marker at 5:26 split. I was still feeling pretty comfortable when we hit the Pond again, but our little group was fragmenting and Sean was fading again.
Splits - 6:15, 6:26, 6:20
Mile 9-12
This three mile stretch of the course is always a gut check. The rolling hills on Jamaicaway/Riverway are no joke and every year, I seem to relax/lose focus a little too much on mile 11. It happened again this year, with mile 11 being my slowest split. By now, I was running solo and just fighting to get to the finish line. I wasn't totally falling apart, but I could tell the aerobic fitness wasn't on par with last year. Also, my diaphragm was cramping up and I just could push any harder.
Splits - 6:16, 6:30, 6:26
Mile 12-finish.
By now, I knew I was going to finish with a decent time and much faster than my goal of a sub-1:25. But with no time barriers within reach and my diaphgram really protesting, I have to admit I mailed it in for the last mile and change. I was content with my time and just being able to make it through the race, but in retrospect, I should have been more competitive. I did try to cover a kick from another BAA teammate that I didn't recognize and in the process I managed to hold off John Barrett just before hitting the finish line. I think a sub-1:23 was doable with more focus over the last 3 miles. Still, it was a great result considering what little training I've done over the last 4 months.
Splits - 6:30, 34.1
Results - 1:23:43, 6:24/mile, 171/179, 88th out of 4022
116 cpm