Ran St George today!!! Got into town around midnight Thursday night. Drove the course Friday and realized that it definitely has some good uphill sections. This made me nervous, but I realized that I would just "do my best." Couldn't sleep very well the night before, woke up at 3 unable to go back to sleep. Layed in bed with my heart pounding with excitement/nerves about the race. (This always happens to me) Woke up and got to the course an hour or so before the start. It was nice to be in the elite area- but it made me nervous looking around at all the great runners. I was so nervous and relieved once the race actually started.
Miles 1 & 2 -6:29, 6:43-These two miles were flat and in the dark and I wanted to take it out really "easy." These two miles felt like a warm up pace. I was surprised how warm it was already, by warm I mean perfect conditions-but I was hoping it would be cooler bc I knew it was going to heat up quickly. I was also surprised by how many girls took off from the get go.. I was probably 9th or 10th after mile 2. I wanted to be up there with them, but knew it was smarter to hold back and pass them later in the race.
Miles 3-6- 6:06, 6:12, 6:19, 6:05- Mile 3 started a small downhill section and my body was feeling warmed up so I stopped holding back so much...These miles felt comfortable-but my stomach was causing me issues and I felt like I needed to take a pit stop around mile 5 or so...I kept thinking I have never had to stop in a race, why now? Thankfully the feeling dissapeared after a couple miles...(strange...Does this ever happen to anyone?) At this point I noticed 2 or 3 girls ahead of me, and I kept plugging along trying to catch them.
Miles 7-11 "the hill" miles 7:29, 7:09, 6:54, 7:04, 6:48. At the beginning of this section I passed a girl who was struggling up the hill. If anyone tells you St George is all downhill they are definitely lying. My goal was to run this section extra easy as to not wear myself out from from running uphill. In my hometown everything is a hill-so I felt prepared. I felt super comfortable and relaxed the whole time during this section. I kept telling myself to take it easy..no pushing.
Miles 12-17 6:21, 6:28, 6:10, 6:03, 6:20, 6:29- This is another good downhill portion of the course. My half split was 1:26:40, about a minute ahead of where I wanted to be. Around mile 12 I caught up with Julie Thomas. I asked her what time she was going for and she said 2:50, I realized we had the same goal and knew I wanted to stick with her. We ran together for a couple miles, then she would pull ahead and then I would pull ahead. My stomach was causing me issues again and I thought for sure I would have to stop, but I didn't and the feeling left again. I also passed Amber Green somewhere in this section. (she got injured I believe) I forgot to take any gu's, so I took my first one at mile 17. What was I thinking? I usually take gu's early on. Anyway, I still felt pretty good and relaxed. The slight headwind was kind of annoying though, and it was also starting to get hot.
Mile 18-24- 6:52, 6:26, 6:11, 6:34, 6:11, 6:12, 6:29 This section is very dowhill except for mile 18. It has a good uphill. Once again I took it easy up the hill. I kept focusing on some of the girls in front of me and was able to pass a girl named Marci around mile 19, also Arianne and Danielle around miles 20 ad 21. I was beginning to feel like I was on a roll and then Julie Thomas passed me again around mile 21. I knew I was in 4th and really wanted third. I was trying to stick with her, but she flew by me. I had another gu, and I think this helped. I kept waiting to "hit the wall," but I never did. I think it helped that this is the most downhill section of the race. I did notice that it was getting hot though.
Miles 25-26- 6:29, 6:33 The last two miles of the race are in town and flatten out. It was so fun seeing all the crowds cheering once you get into town. I also got to see my husband, mom and daughter at mile 24. It gave me a burst of energy and they told me to catch Julie. I realized she was only about 6 seconds ahead of me and I really thought I could pass her, but someone told her I was coming and she took off again. As much as I wanted to pass her I couldn't help but smile, realizing that I was almost done and I was going to run a pr by 10 minutes or so. I also realized that I was close to going under 2:50 and was trying to kick it in. It was awesome turning the corner seeing the finish line, I gave my daughter a high five and ran as hard as I could to the line. 1:50:26. Not quite under 2:50 but almost. When I crossed the line Julie could hardly stand up, she had definitely given it her all and ended up beating me by 21 seconds. She did an awesome job and had a great kick.
I think I ran about as fast as I could have today. I wish I could have kicked it in even more to finish third, but I am extremely happy with 4th. I think starting the race conservatively and running a negative split by 3 minutes helped me to be stronger in the end. I knew that this would be a tough race with great competition and I'm happy with my finish. This race definitely had its challenges, but was a fun course. I felt stronger than any other marathon I have run and I know that I will run St George again, hopefully even faster. Fun course, fun race, fun fans, everything was great except the heat. |