Rock and Roll Half in 1:16:02.
Missed my A goal by a few seconds but I'm pretty happy with my time. It's a PR of a minute and twenty seconds. I may have run too conservatively the first 10 miles but the effort felt about right and I wasn't really able to get much of a next gear until the final 5k, which I ran at 5:43 pace, splitting mile 13 in 5:38, which I guess is something to be proud of even though it suggests I might have had a bit too much left. I hit the finish line pretty wiped though. A full report to follow.
An Allie Moore sighting but I would have had to cross plow a bunch of skinnies to get over to her. And I didn't have anything clever planned to say. Looks like she ran well.
2.5up/3.5 down
REPORT
I have run this race three years in a row and the course is kind of special to me. It was how I started to learn the layout of Philadelphia in 2013 before I moved here. I came to see my wife before we were married and ran the race, hoping to break 80 minutes for the first time. I ran 1:17:50, a PR of I think 4 minutes or nearly that. Last year I ran 1:18:36 with temps in the low 70s and high humidty. Although that bummed me out, I knew I was fit. With the Pope in town the same weekend as the race, it was moved to this weekend. It worked out well because I am fitter and closer to my marathon.
Typical race morning, but too dark for me! I managed to not pee in the bushes of the Rodin Museum this year but I marked a tree in an open park (hey, it was dark). Warmed up 2.5 Kenyan style (very slow, 10 minute first mile). Felt very good, told myself, "We are going to have a good day today." Did some light dynamic stretches followed by strides.
Got into the corral and looked around for Allie. I did see her in the first few hundred meters but she was on the right-hand side so I stayed where I was. I found myself in a pack of women elites, thinking maybe I might run with them. Some fell back early so I concentrated on my effort. First mile was ahead of plan but it felt solid in 5:45. My pace was way weird in between buildings (first time with a GPS on this course).
I felt like the first few miles I wasn't able to turn over even though my cadence was (and is) high. Too slow in those mile maybe other than mile 1. Started to pick it up around mile 5 or 6, still feeling good but waiting until mile 9, which turns back down Martin Luther King.
I started digging in for those final miles and I might have run them faster I don't know. Effort was about right. I've redlined from the gun before and every mile you think your legs will lock up at any minute.
Ripped off a cheeky little 5:38 for mile 13, watching the clock in the distance tick away at high 1:15. Had I started kicking a quarter mile out I would have had it.
The rich chocolatey goodness:
|
Strava
|
Garmin
|
|
5:44
|
5:45
|
|
5:57
|
5:58
|
|
5:41
|
5:58
|
|
5:56
|
5:58
|
|
5:49
|
5:44
|
|
5:45
|
5:44
|
|
5:46
|
5:48
|
|
5:49
|
5:58
|
|
5:57
|
5:53
|
|
5:43
|
5:36
|
|
5:44
|
5:39
|
|
5:40
|
5:51
|
|
5:38
|
5:38
|
|
34
|
33
|
| 