A clydesdale no more!

Warmed up with 3 easy miles.  Ran 3 miles at 1/2 marathon pace to get ready for Ogden.  Couldn't get into a groove from the first step.  I had a lot of little aches and pains and my form didn't feel very smooth.  Half marathon paced miles were right about where I wanted them: 6:36, 6:36, 6:28.  Heart rate stayed at 160 until the end of the last mile when I climbed up an overpass and it got to 165.  Finished with 2 moderately paced miles to cool down.  

Total Time: 57:55 (7:14/mile)

Avg HR: 149 

Plantar fasciitis in my left foot has reared it's ugly head once again.  It just started hurting in the afternoon yesterday.  I hope it's not the new shoes.  Almost turned back home after 1/2 mile but decided to keep going in hopes that it would loosen up.  Started to feel better as I got a little further into the run and was able to get in 6 miles at a moderate pace. Pretty good headwind on the way home but still finished the last mile at marathon pace.  Will probably take it easy for the rest of the week so that I will be ready for Ogden.

Total Time: 44:32 (7:25)

Avg HR: 147 

Talked myself into taking today off to let my left foot heel.  I just couldn't do it.  I had to get out and run.  Decided to take it very easy and not put in too many miles.  My foot feels a lot better than it did yesterday.  I used a golf ball to roll it out last night and it really seemed to help.  After about a mile, it really didn't hurt at all.  My left achilles and right calf were a little sore, though.  Was only going to go 5 but felt good enough to stretch it to 7.  Kept it at a pretty comfortable pace.

 Total Time: 55:18 (7:54/mile)
 

Ran a few comfortably paced miles with 1 downhill mile at half marathon pace.  The slower miles didn't feel great.  Ran the downhill mile a little faster than planned (6:26) but it felt good and was in control.  Foot is almost 100% healed but a couple of other areas are achy now (right calf, left achilles and ankle).  

 For some reason, my weight jumped up a few pounds the past couple of days.  It is starting to come back down but I was hoping to be a few pounds lighter for the race on Saturday.

Total Time: 37:41 (7:32/mile)
 

Easy run to shake things out before tomorrow's race.  Foot is 100% but lower legs still feel a little achy.  Just couldn't get into a groove.  I have to convince myself to push hard tomorrow and allow the race to hurt.  I struggle with running too conservatively and avoiding the pain threshold.  According to Paul's course profile, the half marathon should be pretty fast.  Other than the first 1.5 miles, there is potential to run a lot of fast miles coming down the canyon.  Last year when I ran the full, my legs were too trashed to take advantage of the downhill but do remember being able to get in a couple of pretty fast miles.

Total Time: 31:32 (7:53/mile) 

2007 Ogden Half Marathon

I toyed with the idea of bumping up to the full marathon but decided that I need to get a feel for the shorter, faster races before making an attempt at dropping my marathon PR. I just have a hard time “only” running a half when a full is offered. As the weather forecasts started coming out, I was glad that I stuck with the half. It is unseasonably warm and highs were expected to be in the upper 80’s.

It seems that I can’t write a race report without a POP story. At the starting line the POP’s were lined up along a small creek. Three of them were tipped over backwards into a small creek. I sure hope that nobody was in them when they went over.

After warming up with an easy mile, I headed to the starting line. The half marathon course starts at the halfway point of the marathon course. It comes down Ogden canyon and is a beautiful run. Other than a decent climb during the second mile, the course is mostly downhill with the last 2 miles flat. My goal for the race was to start out at 6:40/mile and try to hold on. Based on last year’s results, I knew that I had a chance at an AG award. Of course, it all depends on who shows up but the thought was there.

Mile 1: 6:30
Gun, horn or something went off (I honestly can’t remember) and the race was under way. I started out running and a pretty good pace and it felt very comfortable. I knew that it was a little faster than my goal pace but it felt good and I wasn’t going to back off. I made the commitment to myself to push harder in this race than I normally do. If I crash, I can still back off and finish in a decent time. It is not like a marathon where going out too fast can completely ruin a race.

Mile 2: 6:48
This is the uphill mile and it was faster than I planned. I expected this to be around 7:00 but I just plugged along and was still feeling good.

Mile 3: 6:32
Just running by effort and maintaining a steady pace.

Mile 4: 6:35
Much of the same.

Mile 5: 6:11
There is a big downhill through this section and I opened it up a little. My legs felt alright but I was starting to get a little winded. My legs are usually the first to go so this was an odd feeling.

Mile 6: 6:39
Still plugging along. Up to this point, I have been running with another guy and there were 2 younger guys about 20 seconds ahead. We were all pretty much running the same pace.

Mile 7: 6:49
I have no idea why this mile was so slow. I think that I was too focused on hanging with the group of runners that I was with and they all slowed a little.

Mile 8: 6:33
Picked up the pace a bit and was back to where I wanted to be.

Mile 9: 6:16
Running downhill with the wind at my back. What more could a runner ask for? I moved past the small group of runners that I was with and started looking for the next person ahead of me.

Mile 10: 6:15
More downhill with a tailwind. This is great and figure that it is pay back for the miserable weather in Boston. I notice that I am starting to heat up and the sweat rate is increasing.

Mile 11: 6:30
I am starting to get tired and the “just back off and cruise in for a pr” thoughts start creeping into my head. A female runner cruised by me and I tried staying with her so that I could make a move on the male runner ahead of me. She was cruising and I had a hard time keeping up.

Mile 12: 6:50
I am really starting to fade. I slowed down for a cup of water which was a huge mistake. It made me realize how tired I was and I had a hard time shifting back into gear. It was getting difficult to stave off the negative thoughts. The girl that passed me earlier was gapping me but I was still making up ground on the runner ahead. I noticed that he had a very low arm swing which meant that he was tiring.

Mile 13.1: 6:19 pace
I promised myself before this race that I was going to make it hurt. Despite the fatigue, I only had 1 mile to go and I started to push the pace. I moved past the male runner and could see the female that passed me and another guy. I could hear the finish line ahead but it didn’t seem like it was getting any closer. I started getting nauseous and decided to push through it instead of backing off. Despite the extra effort, I couldn’t make up any ground on the two runners ahead. Saw my wife and son near the finish line and pushed on through to the end.

Time: 1:25:51 (6:33/mile)
Overall Place: 18
Gender Place: 14
AG Place: 3

This was almost a 4 minute PR. It is also the first time that I have ever placed in my age group. We waited around for the awards ceremony and got a pretty cool plaque. The half marathon is so much more fun than the full. It is certainly not as rewarding but it is a great distance to race. I have been debating whether or not I should make a sub-3 attempt this fall and this helps convince me that it is possible.