WHERE ARE WE GOING?
Dallas
WHEN?
Thursday, Oct. 11
WHY?
Santa Fe 5K
NO REALLY, WHY?
This is the final leg of the three-race series that included Dash Down Greenville and Too Hot to Handle.
WHO ELSE IS GOING?
After last year's inaugural race drew 519 finishers, there should be twice that many this year. Where will they park? That's an excellent question and one we can all agree with.
WHAT'S THE FORECAST?
Hard to believe given this weekend's cooldown, but it should be a shade over 80 degrees with a small chance of a thunderstorm.
HOW DO WE WIN?
The obvious comparison is the Katy 5K, which I ran in 19:50 in May. The temperature will be about the same, and the course is similar, with a meaningful hill in the early going leading to a steady downhill return trip. If I beat 19:50, I'll consider that a win.
Saturday, October 6, 2012
Monday, October 1, 2012
Race review: 8-Hour Run from the Ducks
ENOUGH WITH THE SMALL TALK. HOW'D IT GO?
The numbers will show I had a good run, but it will take a little more narrative to convey the real breakthrough I had in this race. I was given credit for 46 laps of the 0.95-mile course, or 43.7 miles, though I have a feeling I actually completed just 45 (42.75 miles). Either way, I was right around where I hoped I'd be.
DID YOU WIN?
I did not win. Who actually won is a matter of great controversy that is still being sorted out (I'll get into this later). I think the official results will have me as 4th of 12, for now.
HOW'D THAT HAPPEN?
There were thunderstorms and heavy rain in the forecast, so it was actually a bit of a relief to start the race in just a steady drizzle. The course was redrawn at the last minute to direct us away from some areas of the path where rain-weighted low branches were too much of an issue (but a couple dozen other spots remained where ducking or weaving were required, adding a measure of physicality to the run).
The path was just 8 to 10 feet wide in most places, so the start was just an easy jog with the pack as there was nowhere else to go. Eventually an opening came and 4 or 5 of us moved out in front and ran together for a few miles, dropping one runner for a bathroom break (you must not be having a good day if you're stopping for the bathroom barely half an hour in).
I was not paying attention to my pace, just running comfortably with the others. After 7 laps, about an hour in, I made a planned stop to grab a couple gels -- peanut butter Gu is every bit as disgusting as I thought it would be -- and headed back out solo. From there it was just me and the mist for a while. I'd pass someone every few minutes, and at longer intervals, someone would pass me. With so many turns and changes of surface, it was easy to break the course down into very small sections, some of which I enjoyed (the dirt straightaway under the shade trees) and some of which I hated (the flagstone stretch by the pond; seriously, that has to be the worst possible flat surface to run on).
In the third hour I started mixing in some walk breaks, and in the fourth hour I was walking up to 20 percent of the time. The drizzle had not let up at all, and by the halfway mark, the sock change I had prepared for was badly needed. I had to enlist some help from a volunteer to unhook one of my gaiters, so the stop took longer than I had hoped, about 8 minutes.
When I headed back out with a dry cap, shirt and socks, I felt better, and was back to steady running... for a short while. Passing the marathon distance, though, it was clear that I hadn't run this far in 4 months -- and definitely not with so much upper-body work. Walk breaks grew steadily longer... and then the rain started to pick up. Now I was slipping away mentally as well as physically. At 6 hours I was at 34.6 miles. I decided I would just plug along to get to 40 and call it a day.
A couple laps later, 3 shy of 40, I just had to sit down. I grabbed something to eat and sat there and dripped for 7 or 8 minutes, though it felt like longer (and I actually intended for it to be longer). When I got up, I started walking with the intent of just getting 3 more laps done. But then I noticed something: By getting my arms up and walking like I actually had somewhere to go, I was really making good time. I walked mile 39 in 14:01 and decided I would not stop at 40, which lit enough of a fire under me to walk mile 40 in 12:43(!).
Suddenly I had all this extra time on my hands -- 36 minutes left -- and now even my worn-out legs didn't feel so worn out anymore! I walked one more quick lap and now had 24 minutes to get 2 laps in. I knew some running would be needed because I'd be cutting it close, so I took off. This close to the end, I had no need to gingerly avoid the now-ankle-deep puddles to save my feet, and charged right through them. I charged by a couple folks like I was on my first lap of the day, and got back to the start in less than 8 minutes.
If I could have kept that pace up, I might've gotten yet another 2 laps in, but I was running so hard I started to feel it in my chest and pulled up to just walk off the rest of one more lap. In the end I hit the number I was going for, though when I made that goal I didn't recognize how hard it would be to reach. I was very happy with how I got there.
Last Labor Day, I ran a 12-hour race in St. Louis but sat down just after the 10-hour mark. In Austin last December, my 24-hour race came to an end in 12 1/2 hours. A selling point of timed races is that you can't DNF, but those experiences haunted me because I knew that really, I had quit. Finally, this time I got through my low point -- by figuring out how to walk, of all things -- and with the exception of a short break, kept going to the finish. This was a day I will need in the future.
WHAT ELSE?
Though I will remember this event for my personal breakthrough, it will probably be best remembered for uncertainty surrounding the results. Because of a scheduling conflict, the chip timer used in previous years was unavailable. So volunteers were called in count laps -- some local JROTC kids.
Having kids count laps is not a good idea, but frequently changing the lap counters is an even worse idea. I had 5 different kids counting my laps throughout the race. Often they switched without warning -- and mind you, in a lap-counted race it is always the runner's responsibility to ensure the lap is counted. There were several laps where I wasn't fully confident I had been acknowledged, but since I had my Garmin on and wasn't in contention to win, I didn't worry about it.
Well, either some lap counters did an incredibly atrocious job or something nefarious was afoot, because the guy who ran the most laps did not win. Last year's winner, Mark Henderson, was the early rest-stopper I mentioned earlier. Along with leaving him behind for that break, I passed him another 3 times in the early going as he walked and chatted with a female runner and then jogged alongside another slower runner. As the race went on, he eventually made up those laps plus a couple more.
But I never could catch the early front-runner, David Renfro. There was one very brief section where I ran by him as he picked something up from the aid station, but he quickly passed me back, and continued to pass me many times (I didn't keep a hard count but to say he passed me 10 times would not be a stretch).
As I came in to the finish, I wanted to catch my breath and congratulate David. Instead I caught him in the tail end of an argument with the race director, who just repeated, "Bye. Bye." David said, "It's no wonder you only have 13 people," and marched off. When the results were announced, David was not named at all (everyone's name and mileage is read), and Mark was announced as the winner.
I wanted to know what happened, but Tony Mathison, the race director, was clearly agitated as he concluded the ceremony. Every other race I've done where the RD was around afterward, he's chatted me up, asked about my experience, told me he'd see me next year and so on. But Tony just gave me a quick handshake and a quicker "bye", which shocked me because he had been so cordial and enthusiastic throughout the race. There could be something in the Dallas Morning News about this later this week, so keep an eye out.
SPLITS?
1:00:18 - 7.01 mi
1:59:06 - 13.54 mi
2:59:27 - 19.51 mi
4:00:13 - 24.49 mi
4:59:05 - 29.72 mi
5:59:15 - 34.56 mi
7:00:29 - 38.10 mi
7:57:13 - 42.63 mi
OK, WHAT ABOUT THE REAL REASON WE ALL RUN, THE STUFF?
You get a shirt. If you're chosen for the top 3 by gender, you get another shirt indicating such.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Santa Fe 5K, Oct. 11.
The numbers will show I had a good run, but it will take a little more narrative to convey the real breakthrough I had in this race. I was given credit for 46 laps of the 0.95-mile course, or 43.7 miles, though I have a feeling I actually completed just 45 (42.75 miles). Either way, I was right around where I hoped I'd be.
DID YOU WIN?
I did not win. Who actually won is a matter of great controversy that is still being sorted out (I'll get into this later). I think the official results will have me as 4th of 12, for now.
HOW'D THAT HAPPEN?
There were thunderstorms and heavy rain in the forecast, so it was actually a bit of a relief to start the race in just a steady drizzle. The course was redrawn at the last minute to direct us away from some areas of the path where rain-weighted low branches were too much of an issue (but a couple dozen other spots remained where ducking or weaving were required, adding a measure of physicality to the run).
The path was just 8 to 10 feet wide in most places, so the start was just an easy jog with the pack as there was nowhere else to go. Eventually an opening came and 4 or 5 of us moved out in front and ran together for a few miles, dropping one runner for a bathroom break (you must not be having a good day if you're stopping for the bathroom barely half an hour in).
I was not paying attention to my pace, just running comfortably with the others. After 7 laps, about an hour in, I made a planned stop to grab a couple gels -- peanut butter Gu is every bit as disgusting as I thought it would be -- and headed back out solo. From there it was just me and the mist for a while. I'd pass someone every few minutes, and at longer intervals, someone would pass me. With so many turns and changes of surface, it was easy to break the course down into very small sections, some of which I enjoyed (the dirt straightaway under the shade trees) and some of which I hated (the flagstone stretch by the pond; seriously, that has to be the worst possible flat surface to run on).
In the third hour I started mixing in some walk breaks, and in the fourth hour I was walking up to 20 percent of the time. The drizzle had not let up at all, and by the halfway mark, the sock change I had prepared for was badly needed. I had to enlist some help from a volunteer to unhook one of my gaiters, so the stop took longer than I had hoped, about 8 minutes.
When I headed back out with a dry cap, shirt and socks, I felt better, and was back to steady running... for a short while. Passing the marathon distance, though, it was clear that I hadn't run this far in 4 months -- and definitely not with so much upper-body work. Walk breaks grew steadily longer... and then the rain started to pick up. Now I was slipping away mentally as well as physically. At 6 hours I was at 34.6 miles. I decided I would just plug along to get to 40 and call it a day.
A couple laps later, 3 shy of 40, I just had to sit down. I grabbed something to eat and sat there and dripped for 7 or 8 minutes, though it felt like longer (and I actually intended for it to be longer). When I got up, I started walking with the intent of just getting 3 more laps done. But then I noticed something: By getting my arms up and walking like I actually had somewhere to go, I was really making good time. I walked mile 39 in 14:01 and decided I would not stop at 40, which lit enough of a fire under me to walk mile 40 in 12:43(!).
Suddenly I had all this extra time on my hands -- 36 minutes left -- and now even my worn-out legs didn't feel so worn out anymore! I walked one more quick lap and now had 24 minutes to get 2 laps in. I knew some running would be needed because I'd be cutting it close, so I took off. This close to the end, I had no need to gingerly avoid the now-ankle-deep puddles to save my feet, and charged right through them. I charged by a couple folks like I was on my first lap of the day, and got back to the start in less than 8 minutes.
If I could have kept that pace up, I might've gotten yet another 2 laps in, but I was running so hard I started to feel it in my chest and pulled up to just walk off the rest of one more lap. In the end I hit the number I was going for, though when I made that goal I didn't recognize how hard it would be to reach. I was very happy with how I got there.
Last Labor Day, I ran a 12-hour race in St. Louis but sat down just after the 10-hour mark. In Austin last December, my 24-hour race came to an end in 12 1/2 hours. A selling point of timed races is that you can't DNF, but those experiences haunted me because I knew that really, I had quit. Finally, this time I got through my low point -- by figuring out how to walk, of all things -- and with the exception of a short break, kept going to the finish. This was a day I will need in the future.
WHAT ELSE?
Though I will remember this event for my personal breakthrough, it will probably be best remembered for uncertainty surrounding the results. Because of a scheduling conflict, the chip timer used in previous years was unavailable. So volunteers were called in count laps -- some local JROTC kids.
Having kids count laps is not a good idea, but frequently changing the lap counters is an even worse idea. I had 5 different kids counting my laps throughout the race. Often they switched without warning -- and mind you, in a lap-counted race it is always the runner's responsibility to ensure the lap is counted. There were several laps where I wasn't fully confident I had been acknowledged, but since I had my Garmin on and wasn't in contention to win, I didn't worry about it.
Well, either some lap counters did an incredibly atrocious job or something nefarious was afoot, because the guy who ran the most laps did not win. Last year's winner, Mark Henderson, was the early rest-stopper I mentioned earlier. Along with leaving him behind for that break, I passed him another 3 times in the early going as he walked and chatted with a female runner and then jogged alongside another slower runner. As the race went on, he eventually made up those laps plus a couple more.
But I never could catch the early front-runner, David Renfro. There was one very brief section where I ran by him as he picked something up from the aid station, but he quickly passed me back, and continued to pass me many times (I didn't keep a hard count but to say he passed me 10 times would not be a stretch).
As I came in to the finish, I wanted to catch my breath and congratulate David. Instead I caught him in the tail end of an argument with the race director, who just repeated, "Bye. Bye." David said, "It's no wonder you only have 13 people," and marched off. When the results were announced, David was not named at all (everyone's name and mileage is read), and Mark was announced as the winner.
I wanted to know what happened, but Tony Mathison, the race director, was clearly agitated as he concluded the ceremony. Every other race I've done where the RD was around afterward, he's chatted me up, asked about my experience, told me he'd see me next year and so on. But Tony just gave me a quick handshake and a quicker "bye", which shocked me because he had been so cordial and enthusiastic throughout the race. There could be something in the Dallas Morning News about this later this week, so keep an eye out.
SPLITS?
1:00:18 - 7.01 mi
1:59:06 - 13.54 mi
2:59:27 - 19.51 mi
4:00:13 - 24.49 mi
4:59:05 - 29.72 mi
5:59:15 - 34.56 mi
7:00:29 - 38.10 mi
7:57:13 - 42.63 mi
OK, WHAT ABOUT THE REAL REASON WE ALL RUN, THE STUFF?
You get a shirt. If you're chosen for the top 3 by gender, you get another shirt indicating such.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Santa Fe 5K, Oct. 11.
Monday, September 24, 2012
Race preview: 8-Hour Run from the Ducks
WHERE ARE WE GOING?
Weatherford, Texas
WHEN?
Saturday, Sept. 29
WHY?
8-Hour Run from the Ducks
NO REALLY, WHY?
It's time to renew my ultra card. Rocky Raccoon is too far away for this race to be considered training, but I haven't run longer than 20 miles since Old Dominion so this will make sure I don't forget what it's like.
WHO ELSE IS GOING?
Should be about 35 runners in all.
WHAT'S THE FORECAST?
It'll be about 65 degrees at the start. After that, no one seems to know yet. It might rain. It might rain a LOT, or not at all. It might only get into the upper 70s, or it might make it to the upper 80s. On the same date a year ago it was 100. At least we won't have that.
HOW DO WE WIN?
My output will be quite dependent on how warm it gets and how well I'm able to stave off blisters if it's wet. I think I'll be upset if I don't hit 37 laps (39.96 miles; only full laps count), almost no matter what happens. Beyond that, I have no idea. Forty laps (43.2 miles) seems like an appropriate target.
Weatherford, Texas
WHEN?
Saturday, Sept. 29
WHY?
8-Hour Run from the Ducks
NO REALLY, WHY?
It's time to renew my ultra card. Rocky Raccoon is too far away for this race to be considered training, but I haven't run longer than 20 miles since Old Dominion so this will make sure I don't forget what it's like.
WHO ELSE IS GOING?
Should be about 35 runners in all.
WHAT'S THE FORECAST?
It'll be about 65 degrees at the start. After that, no one seems to know yet. It might rain. It might rain a LOT, or not at all. It might only get into the upper 70s, or it might make it to the upper 80s. On the same date a year ago it was 100. At least we won't have that.
HOW DO WE WIN?
My output will be quite dependent on how warm it gets and how well I'm able to stave off blisters if it's wet. I think I'll be upset if I don't hit 37 laps (39.96 miles; only full laps count), almost no matter what happens. Beyond that, I have no idea. Forty laps (43.2 miles) seems like an appropriate target.
What has this guy ever done?
PRs are an easy way to measure your best races at certain distances, but they still leave the question of which race is your best ever. That marathon PR may actually be less impressive than your 3rd-best 5K.
So we turn to the same method used to compare races between folks of different ages or genders: age grading. There are different scales and calculators and such; I use this one, although it bugs me that it doesn't work for ultras (not that it would matter for me, yet; my ultra times have all been unimpressive). I decided to take all my results from 4 1/2 years of racing and run the numbers to determine just what my best races ever have been:
So we turn to the same method used to compare races between folks of different ages or genders: age grading. There are different scales and calculators and such; I use this one, although it bugs me that it doesn't work for ultras (not that it would matter for me, yet; my ultra times have all been unimpressive). I decided to take all my results from 4 1/2 years of racing and run the numbers to determine just what my best races ever have been:
| Race | Location | Date | Time | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Get Ready to Rock 20M | White Bear Lake, MN | 9/8/12 | 2:22:09 | 79.6 |
| Run the Line HM | Texarkana, TX | 2/20/11 | 1:29:51 | 79.4 |
| Too Hot to Handle 15K | Dallas, TX | 7/15/12 | 1:02:51 | 79.2 |
| Texas Half | Dallas, TX | 1/29/11 | 1:30:06 | 79.2 |
| Dash Down Greenville 5K | Dallas, TX | 3/12/11 | 19:23 | 78.9 |
| Too Cold to Hold 15K | Dallas, TX | 1/23/11 | 1:02:57 | 78.7 |
| Boo Run HM | Cleburne, TX | 10/30/10 | 1:30:42 | 78.7 |
| Tour des Fleurs 20K | Dallas, TX | 9/15/12 | 1:27:08 | 78.0 |
| Plano Balloon Festival HM | Plano, TX | 9/23/12 | 1:32:16 | 78.0 |
| Rock 'n' Roll Dallas HM | Dallas, TX | 3/27/11 | 1:31:42 | 77.8 |
As you see, the 10K and marathon distances are not represented in my top 10. For the former, it's a matter of sample size. I've only run one 10K since January 2010 and it was on a hard course (thus yielding a soft PR that I should crush at my next 2 10Ks in November).
For the latter, well, I don't have an excuse, but I have hope. The 3 Texas races from 2012 on this list were all warm. The top race was cool. If I stay in good shape and run Houston at that level in January, I'll be going back to Boston in 2014.
Race review: Plano Balloon Festival Half Marathon
ENOUGH WITH THE SMALL TALK. HOW'D IT GO?
This race was almost identical to last week's 20K, but with it coming on an easier course, I'm less enthused about the result. I ran a 1:32:16, tying the age-graded score from last week as my 8th best race (I'll post the top 10 sometime this week).
DID YOU WIN?
I picked up my 2nd age group award of the month, finishing 2nd of 35. I was 11th of 481 overall.
HOW'D THAT HAPPEN?
It's worth mentioning that my plan to run 4 easy miles Saturday morning morphed into 5 less-easy miles Saturday afternoon. I thought I'd gotten to the point that a 5-mile run would be easily forgotten, but perhaps not.
I got an abbreviated warm-up in as there was hardly any space in which to do so. The road was fenced off a couple hundred yards past the start line until right before the start, and the area behind the start was filled with balloon-gazers.
I lined up in front and rather quickly settled into the 8th spot as the lead group fanned out. Turning onto Los Rios just past the 1-mile mark, I was treated to a great view of the morning balloon launch, with 10 or so balloons rising over the trees to my right. This kept me at ease while climbing the only 2 hills of consequence on the course. It's good to know that after 2.8 miles, the hardest work is done.
At the top of the 2nd hill, I turned sharply back toward the nature preserve (one of 4 sharp turns on the course). I got a look at the runner whose footsteps I'd been hearing just about 4 seconds behind me. I would hear those footsteps for another 5 miles before he finally overtook me at another turnaround point. I don't know if it was getting passed that took the wind out of my sails, or the sudden stop and start of the turnaround, or fatigue from running the day before, but my race was not the same after that. After another runner passed me, I hoped I could hang on to a spot in the top 10, but that was lost with about half a mile to go.
WHAT ELSE?
I commend the organizers for doing their best to put together an attractive course. There is good use of park trails and the nature preserve to keep things scenic. But 4 turns of basically 180 degrees are stressful, and beyond that, there were hardly any views of the balloons after that early stretch on Los Rios.
Also, the finish area was way too congested. The last 100 yards or so had the half marathoners merging with swarms of 5K runners, with no barrier to separate them along a narrow path. And with volunteers handing out medals just steps beyond the finish line, also in a narrow fenced-in area, there was little room to move.
On the positive side, the post-race breakfast of bacon, eggs, muffins, yogurt and OJ was quite strong. When you see a race with any ties at all to Central Market, consider that a plus.
SPLITS?
6:48
6:55
6:50
6:50
6:56
6:49
6:46
6:59
7:07
7:13
7:26
7:20
7:20
6:31 pace last .15
OK, WHAT ABOUT THE REAL REASON WE ALL RUN, THE STUFF?
The finisher's medal is a substantial piece of hardware on which you could serve a small stack. The age-group award, on the other hand, is a small, plastic budgetary afterthought:
WHAT'S NEXT?
8-Hour Run from the Ducks, Saturday.
This race was almost identical to last week's 20K, but with it coming on an easier course, I'm less enthused about the result. I ran a 1:32:16, tying the age-graded score from last week as my 8th best race (I'll post the top 10 sometime this week).
DID YOU WIN?
I picked up my 2nd age group award of the month, finishing 2nd of 35. I was 11th of 481 overall.
HOW'D THAT HAPPEN?
It's worth mentioning that my plan to run 4 easy miles Saturday morning morphed into 5 less-easy miles Saturday afternoon. I thought I'd gotten to the point that a 5-mile run would be easily forgotten, but perhaps not.
I got an abbreviated warm-up in as there was hardly any space in which to do so. The road was fenced off a couple hundred yards past the start line until right before the start, and the area behind the start was filled with balloon-gazers.
I lined up in front and rather quickly settled into the 8th spot as the lead group fanned out. Turning onto Los Rios just past the 1-mile mark, I was treated to a great view of the morning balloon launch, with 10 or so balloons rising over the trees to my right. This kept me at ease while climbing the only 2 hills of consequence on the course. It's good to know that after 2.8 miles, the hardest work is done.
At the top of the 2nd hill, I turned sharply back toward the nature preserve (one of 4 sharp turns on the course). I got a look at the runner whose footsteps I'd been hearing just about 4 seconds behind me. I would hear those footsteps for another 5 miles before he finally overtook me at another turnaround point. I don't know if it was getting passed that took the wind out of my sails, or the sudden stop and start of the turnaround, or fatigue from running the day before, but my race was not the same after that. After another runner passed me, I hoped I could hang on to a spot in the top 10, but that was lost with about half a mile to go.
WHAT ELSE?
I commend the organizers for doing their best to put together an attractive course. There is good use of park trails and the nature preserve to keep things scenic. But 4 turns of basically 180 degrees are stressful, and beyond that, there were hardly any views of the balloons after that early stretch on Los Rios.
Also, the finish area was way too congested. The last 100 yards or so had the half marathoners merging with swarms of 5K runners, with no barrier to separate them along a narrow path. And with volunteers handing out medals just steps beyond the finish line, also in a narrow fenced-in area, there was little room to move.
On the positive side, the post-race breakfast of bacon, eggs, muffins, yogurt and OJ was quite strong. When you see a race with any ties at all to Central Market, consider that a plus.
SPLITS?
6:48
6:55
6:50
6:50
6:56
6:49
6:46
6:59
7:07
7:13
7:26
7:20
7:20
6:31 pace last .15
OK, WHAT ABOUT THE REAL REASON WE ALL RUN, THE STUFF?
The finisher's medal is a substantial piece of hardware on which you could serve a small stack. The age-group award, on the other hand, is a small, plastic budgetary afterthought:
WHAT'S NEXT?
8-Hour Run from the Ducks, Saturday.
Monday, September 17, 2012
Race preview: Plano Balloon Festival Half Marathon
WHERE ARE WE GOING?
Plano, Texas
WHEN?
Sunday, Sept. 23
WHY?
Plano Balloon Festival Half Marathon
NO REALLY, WHY?
This is another race with no concrete motivation to take part in, other than it's there. If my toddler is in a good mood Sunday morning, she'll probably enjoy watching the balloons and moseying around the festival with my wife. If not, I'll head off solo again.
WHO ELSE IS GOING?
The race is sold out. My detective work suggests there are 500 entrants (400 announced at registration open, 100 added at the end of August).
WHAT'S THE FORECAST?
A cold front is due to come through Saturday night so it might be just 60 degrees at the start, but it should warm up quickly as the sun goes up, so hurry up and finish before that happens.
HOW DO WE WIN?
I'm dropping my mileage a bit this week so if it is indeed cool at the start, it's possible that my 1:29:51 PR is in play since I've been racing well this month and the course is generally flat. I'll predict a finish of 1:31-something. Last year, a mere 1:41 would've won the age group (and 1:35 was good for 3rd overall), but with the size of the field doubling this year (and the race now on a different weekend than Tour des Fleurs), that won't happen again.
Plano, Texas
WHEN?
Sunday, Sept. 23
WHY?
Plano Balloon Festival Half Marathon
NO REALLY, WHY?
This is another race with no concrete motivation to take part in, other than it's there. If my toddler is in a good mood Sunday morning, she'll probably enjoy watching the balloons and moseying around the festival with my wife. If not, I'll head off solo again.
WHO ELSE IS GOING?
The race is sold out. My detective work suggests there are 500 entrants (400 announced at registration open, 100 added at the end of August).
WHAT'S THE FORECAST?
A cold front is due to come through Saturday night so it might be just 60 degrees at the start, but it should warm up quickly as the sun goes up, so hurry up and finish before that happens.
HOW DO WE WIN?
I'm dropping my mileage a bit this week so if it is indeed cool at the start, it's possible that my 1:29:51 PR is in play since I've been racing well this month and the course is generally flat. I'll predict a finish of 1:31-something. Last year, a mere 1:41 would've won the age group (and 1:35 was good for 3rd overall), but with the size of the field doubling this year (and the race now on a different weekend than Tour des Fleurs), that won't happen again.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Race review: Tour des Fleurs 20K
ENOUGH WITH THE SMALL TALK. HOW'D IT GO?
My streak of strong runs continued with a 1:27:08, a minute shy of my goal time but perfectly fine given that I didn't think about the hills when I set my goal.
DID YOU WIN?
I don't know if the weather was much better this year -- I think it was just a little better -- or a lot more speedsters showed up, but a time that would've earned me 4th place in my age group last year was only good for 11th this time (out of 59). Overall I was 55th of 739, 49th of 381 men.
HOW'D THAT HAPPEN?
The race was pretty standard White Rock fare until the 6-mile mark, when we turned off into the residential area and started hitting the hills. I crossed the 10K mat in 43:01 for a 6:55 average pace, just as planned.
The rest of the way, though, was a different story. It's just one hill after another through that Lakewood section, and I worked my butt off to get up each of them to try to sail down the other side. Somewhere along the way, maybe around mile 8 or so, I caught sight of esteemed masters runner Laura Nelson and made it my goal to catch her. I very gradually inched closer and really seemed to be gaining steam once I got back to the lake trail. I was within 100 yards as we hit mile marker 11.
But my last mile was a mess. I struggled to shift back into climbing mode for that one last hill by the spillway, and the turn back into the north headwind didn't help. I finished about 35 seconds behind Laura. I would've been another spot back in the standings, too, as another female runner sidled up to me with merely 30 yards to go. I couldn't pass the woman I was chasing but I was not about to get chicked here, so I dropped into a dead sprint and nosed this one out by less than a second.
WHAT ELSE?
I hadn't planned to, but I gave in and took the shuttle from Lakeside Baptist Church to the start. Many races in/near the lake sort of throw you to the wolves when it comes to parking, but TdF does a very good job of making sure you're where you need to be and you get to the start on time.
SPLITS?
7:01
6:46
6:55
6:57
6:51
6:50
7:12
7:00
7:02
7:09
6:47
7:24
7:11 pace last .47
OK, WHAT ABOUT THE REAL REASON WE ALL RUN, THE STUFF?
You get a shirt. The money for any other goodies is devoted to prize money for top finishers and what I'm told are pretty nice awards for age-group winners, and I'm fine with that.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Plano Balloon Festival Half Marathon, Sept. 23.
My streak of strong runs continued with a 1:27:08, a minute shy of my goal time but perfectly fine given that I didn't think about the hills when I set my goal.
DID YOU WIN?
I don't know if the weather was much better this year -- I think it was just a little better -- or a lot more speedsters showed up, but a time that would've earned me 4th place in my age group last year was only good for 11th this time (out of 59). Overall I was 55th of 739, 49th of 381 men.
HOW'D THAT HAPPEN?
The race was pretty standard White Rock fare until the 6-mile mark, when we turned off into the residential area and started hitting the hills. I crossed the 10K mat in 43:01 for a 6:55 average pace, just as planned.
The rest of the way, though, was a different story. It's just one hill after another through that Lakewood section, and I worked my butt off to get up each of them to try to sail down the other side. Somewhere along the way, maybe around mile 8 or so, I caught sight of esteemed masters runner Laura Nelson and made it my goal to catch her. I very gradually inched closer and really seemed to be gaining steam once I got back to the lake trail. I was within 100 yards as we hit mile marker 11.
But my last mile was a mess. I struggled to shift back into climbing mode for that one last hill by the spillway, and the turn back into the north headwind didn't help. I finished about 35 seconds behind Laura. I would've been another spot back in the standings, too, as another female runner sidled up to me with merely 30 yards to go. I couldn't pass the woman I was chasing but I was not about to get chicked here, so I dropped into a dead sprint and nosed this one out by less than a second.
WHAT ELSE?
I hadn't planned to, but I gave in and took the shuttle from Lakeside Baptist Church to the start. Many races in/near the lake sort of throw you to the wolves when it comes to parking, but TdF does a very good job of making sure you're where you need to be and you get to the start on time.
SPLITS?
7:01
6:46
6:55
6:57
6:51
6:50
7:12
7:00
7:02
7:09
6:47
7:24
7:11 pace last .47
OK, WHAT ABOUT THE REAL REASON WE ALL RUN, THE STUFF?
You get a shirt. The money for any other goodies is devoted to prize money for top finishers and what I'm told are pretty nice awards for age-group winners, and I'm fine with that.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Plano Balloon Festival Half Marathon, Sept. 23.
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