Seattle Rock n Roll Half Marathon - 1:19:51 - 59th place
I would have to say I'm pretty pleased with this race result. I came in hoping for about a 1:22, but not knowing what was really going to happen. I am usually pretty objective about my fitness and race goals, and the data wasn't pretty: 22 miles per week average for 2011, only 1 run over 11 miles and very limited workouts. The past 3 weeks have picked up a bit, but I still haven't cracked 40 miles a week yet.
When I found out I'd be at a work training in Seattle, I checked into local races and thought this would be a good motivator to get me back in shape. It didn't really happen, but here I was, so I had to make the best of it.
I warmed up from the hotel in Renton by jogging and walking about 35 -40 minutes to the start line. It was an ideal race day - cool and cloudy. I worked my way through 26,000 people just before the race started to get my spot in corral 1 behind the elite folks.
I started out conservatively, and it felt great to be in a race again. I was shooting for 6:20's and maybe a little quicker in the last few miles. A couple of minutes in, I was buried behind at least 100-200 people, but the upside was that I figured there would be people to run with the whole way.
Mile 1 came in 6:08, and I found myself with 3 Club Northwest runners: one older guy who seemed to be running pretty easily pacing 2 quick looking women. I stayed near them and passed mile 2 with a 6:12. They pulled away a bit on an uphill mile 3, which I clocked in 6:17. I picked it up and ran with them for about the next 15 minutes. I hit a 6:04 mile 4 and then 12:05 for miles 5 and 6.
I used the momentum on a steep downhill to open up a little gap on them and slowly started passing more runners. Along a flat, winding road along Lake Washington, I ran with another female runner for a couple of miles. I ran mile 7 in 6:00 and mile 8 in 6:09 and was feeling really good. I knew, however, that I was running on borrowed time and that the fatigue would be setting in soon.
Just before mile 9, there's a short, steep uphill that leads into a highway tunnel. I got passed back by the 3 Club Northwest runners and another runner in short order. Mile 9 was a 6:17 and my quads were starting to feel it. To top it off, my shoelace came untied while we were running through the tunnel and I stopped to tie it and lost a few more seconds.
The upside was that the last couple of miles are a net downhill. I ran 6:19 for mile 10 (shoe tie) and then quicked up my cadence to run 5:59 and 5:25 for the next 2 miles. Some quick math told me I would probably break 1:20, but my legs were just destroyed from the concrete and lack of mileage so I just kind of cruised in the last mile, counting down the minutes. My final time was a 1:19:51 for a 6:07 average.
Thoughts: #1 It was a great day to race. I wish I could have been fit. You don't get opportunities for PRs often, and this could have been it. The course is hilly, but it's fair and ends with some downhill. It was a deep field as well - 1:03:51 for the winner and 60+ runners under 1:20.
#2 I am now really motivated to start running more. I think I can run 1:15 by late fall if I can just get my mileage up. Being able to run within 3 minutes of my PR off such little training really helps my confidence.
#3 I need to lose some weight. I felt like Andre the Giant out there. I'm pushing 185 lbs....170 is a good racing weight for me.
#4 Seattle is a fun city to knock around in for a few days. Lots of fun and interesting things to see. | 