http://howlingcommando.fastrunningblog.com

Hangover Half Marathon

15% off for Fast Running Blog members at St. George Running Center!

Location:

Middle Grove,NY,

Member Since:

Nov 01, 2007

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Other

Running Accomplishments:

Finished two marathons before my 21st birthday this year (5.28.07),
First Marathon - 10/08/06 - Mohawk Hudson River Marathon 4:26:57,
Second Marathon - 5/27/07 - Vermont City Marathon 4:32:xx

Personal Bests:

400 - 1:01 (2004)
800 - 2:16 (2004)
Mile - 5:12 (2004)
2Mile - 11:27 (2004)
5k - 19:44 (2005)
10k 40:46 (11/22/07)
15k - 1:07:40 (11/11/07)
13.11 Half - 1:38:31 (12/9/07)
Marathon 4:26:57 (2006)

Gave up soda starting November 23, 2006. Still going strong.
Eagle Scout with Bronze and Gold Palms (2002)

Biked from Ticonderoga, New York to Old Orchard Beach, Maine in August of 2005 (Total of about 290 miles)

Short-Term Running Goals:

Be able to run more than 3 miles pain free again.
Eliminate processed foods from my diet.
Increased Focus on Core Strength Exercises.
No Eating After 8:00pm!
Get more sleep.
Most importantly, Think POSITIVE!!!

50 MILE and 100 MILE bike rides before the end of the year!

Long-Term Running Goals:

Be able to lace up my shoes and head out the door into my 70s, 80s, and 90s. Would like to do a marathon in as many states and countries as I can.

Break 19 minutes for a 5k
Break 39 minutes for a 10k
Break 60 minutes for a 15k
~~Break 1:40 for a half marathon~~
Break 1:33 for half marathon
Under 3:10:59 in full marathon (*BQ)

QUALIFY FOR AND RUN IN THE BOSTON MARATHON!!!!!

Run a TRAIL Marathon as well as at least one 50 or 100 MILER in my life!

Personal:

"Just Race" - Jonn during Stockade-athon 15k 11.11.2007

"Get out the door and let the run happen." - Sasha

**Trying hard to live up to both of these goals!** Determined to finish more marathons, and hopefully a 50miler one day!

I live in upstate NY. I am the oldest of four kids. I've been running since the spring of 2003 when I decided to shed some extra weight and maybe go out for my high school cross country team. Currently am doing MS in Education. Hope to teach Social Studies one day. I have the most amazing girlfriend ever, and she frequently goes running/jogging/hiking with me. Going to marry her one day :)

Click to donate

to Ukraine's Armed Forces

Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	0.00	Year:	0.00

Tue, Jan 01, 2008

Race: Hangover Half Marathon (13.11 Miles) 01:38:33, Place overall: 31

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Crosstraining miles	Total Miles
1.00	13.11	0.00	0.00	0.00	14.11

12:00 PM - So today we were forecasted to get another 4 to 8 inches of snow on top of what we got the other day. It was a dangerous drive down to Albany. The route I take to school which usually takes 45 minutes took about an hour and a half, but we got there. Snow was coming down heavy around the start of the race. The first mile went really slow and had to be close to 9 minutes for me. There was a 3.5 miler being run simultaneously so I lined up about midpack to let the rabbits have their fun. Once we got out on the State Campus Loop though the roads were a little better. About 2-3 inches of slush, but I was able to run in the tracks of the cars that were going by. Around mile 2 I caught up to a father/daughter team I thought were running the 3.5 miler. Turns out the dad was doing the Hangover Half. We started chatting and from mile 2 to mile 9 we ran together, until we caught a couple of his friends and booked a 6:40 Mile 9. I hung tough, but it was kind of funny. One of my brothers, my sister and my mom all came down to see me run, and they thought it'd be funny to lob a snowball out in front of me. Well this was when I was trying to hang onto the blistering pace, about 3 or 4 feet off the back of the group of 4, and my brother lobs one right in front of me and then about two seconds later... SPLaT! I get hit in the side of the face right about at the temple with a snowball. Haha in retrospect it's kind of funny, but it wasn't very funny at the time that's for sure! So I tried to regroup, but the group of 4 just started to accelerate further as we went up the hill. I was left to run the last four miles in by myself. I caught and passed two others out on the course and shuffled home with probably a horribly slow 8:50 or 8:55 last mile. I was really struggling to just regain some of that cool, calm, collected I had maintained for so long. Overall, however I felt really good. I just wish Emmy had been there to see me run. So far the races she's gone to were my two marathons where I did anything but race it seems... though she did get to see me set the huge PR in the 10k on Turkey Day! So that's a plus. Overall, I have to say that given the crappy conditions out on the road, and the snowball, I held my own. I just need to train a little harder I realize to be able to best my PRs even in less than favorable conditions. I did a 1 mile cool down in about 9 or 9:30 then got some coffee, pizza, and changed my clothes. We stopped at Walmart on the way home to pick up some necessary food items for our trip... WE'RE GOING TO PUERTO RICO January 3rd to the 10th!!! I can't wait! I'll actually be able to see Emma for an entire week! (This is a miracle as I hardly get to see her while we're at school.) She truly is an amazing girl. I saw her on Christmas, and I'm already going crazy because I haven't seen her and it's only been 7 days!

I will make sure I don't slack too much during the vacation. I have snorkeling gear and am bringing running shoes. So I will be running/swimming/hiking/snorkeling all week! I can't wait! I will have to bring back some pictures for everyone!

Total Mileage Today: 14.11 (13.11 = race) Time for Race: 1:38:33 Average Pace: 7:31/Mile - Good for 31st place in the half-marathon overall! Not sure about place in my age division.

Comments

From Shauna on Tue, Jan 01, 2008 at 18:11:11

Great job! You actually ran the same time as your PR that you set last month, and in really crappy conditions. So you have obviously improved, even since then.

Enjoy your vacation!

From MichelleL on Tue, Jan 01, 2008 at 18:14:35

Dang, only 2 seconds off your PR! Without the snowball, you probably would have gotten it, but I think I might have been tempted to lob on at you myself if I was there. It's always funner to be on the dishing out side than the receiving side. Good job on a tough race. I guess it's the races in nonideal conditions that make us way tough. The next step is to make sure you run consistently in the next could of months--now that you have learned how to lace up and run 10 miles in nasty conditions, now you just need to practice doing it day in and day out. Great way to start your new year! Every other race will seem so much easier after this one! What is the next race for you? I would think that your 1800 miles goal for 2008 is too conservative. An ave of 40 mpw with two weeks off is 2000, 45 is 2250. I would think that 45 at least should be your goal. IMHO of course.

From James on Tue, Jan 01, 2008 at 18:30:24

Nice job. Way to stay poised after being assaulted with a snow ball. I would have handled it in a not so poised way, to say the least. You could probably count this as a PR if you wanted since it was a real race. Good run in bad conditions, it will make you tough.

Have fun in Puerto Rico!

From Sasha Pachev on Tue, Jan 01, 2008 at 18:34:13

Very good. The effort is probably worth a low-1:30 if you could hit a 6:40 and a 9:00 in the same race. Half-marathon pace is naturally very steady. If you can do something for one mile somewhere in the middle, it is very rare that you would not be able to do it at 20 seconds per mile slower for the entire race on the same terrain.

I agree with Michelle on the mileage. 45 a week should be the absolute minimum. You should probably not go over 65 on the other end, but do make sure to gradually hit 55-60 range consistently. 120 is difficult to do when life is full of responsibilities, but 60 is very doable - all it takes is to give up about an hour and a half a day of some form of idleness, and very few people are truly that busy that they would not have it.

From josse on Tue, Jan 01, 2008 at 20:16:17

I think you did really well considering the conditions, I think running on slick, snowy roads is very difficult. You are going to smash your pr's this summer:) Have a great time on the vacation, I'm jealous.

From Ian on Wed, Jan 02, 2008 at 07:46:11

Well done on a good race in lousy conditions, now go and have a great holiday.

From Dale on Thu, Jan 03, 2008 at 10:48:31

Better conditions would certainly have yielded a faster time, and a snowball assault doesn't help matters any. Nonetheless, you persevered thru and were only 2 seconds off a PR set less than 1 month earlier? I'd say you've got some much faster times in you just screaming to be let out! Congrats on setting a great tone for the rest of 2008!

From saamijeff on Thu, Jan 03, 2008 at 20:33:27

Great run! You give me hope for the future looking at how fast you improved. Boy I remember January conditions in upstate NY....just think what a nice spring day might bring for time.

From Brent on Mon, Jan 07, 2008 at 21:01:10

Benn, 50 commando points, great effort, keep it going, PRs to come this year big time.

Stay Cool, B of BS Rools out

Add Your Comment.

Keep it family-safe. No vulgar or profane language. To discourage anonymous comments of cowardly nature, your IP address will be logged and posted next to your comment.
Do not respond to another person's comment out of context. If he made the original comment on another page/blog entry, go to that entry and respond there.
If all you want to do is contact the blogger and your comment is not connected with this entry and has no relevance to others, send a private message instead.

Debt Reduction Calculator

Featured Announcements

Most Recent Entries:

New Kids on the Blog
(need a welcome):

Lone Faithfuls
(need a comment):