Today was quite an adventure, actually the week has been pretty busy as well. After yesterday's run we spent some time sightseeing and hiking. Didn't seem too strenuous at the time but may have affected me a little bit. Arrived at the buses about 7:45, everything was very well organized. Hung out for a bit at the drop off point before heading over to the starting area. It was a little bit chilly but it was time to drop off the sweats onto the trailer, so it was a good time for a warm up. I saw a woman wearing an FRB singlet so I introduced myself and said hi. She was Carolyn from Colarado, we chatted for just a bit before splitting off for our warm ups. I wished I had an FRB shirt also. I knew there were probably other bloggers there as well and I've been enjoying reading their race reports. While doing my warm up, I didn't feel quite as good as I did before my last half marathon. I pushed that thought aside and tried to stay positive. As the time got closer, I lined up near the 7:00 pace sign. There were a lot of unknowns today so I wasn't sure what was going to happen, not sure if the altitude would affect me, or the later start, or perhaps the traveling or maybe the hiking yesterday, but I was hoping to do my best and see what happened. Earlier that morning, Jenny had called me to let me know she had done really well at her 5K, a huge new PR! So I was also hoping to do well since she had done so well. So, the race starts and we slowly (at first) move to the start line. People were lined up pretty well, but there are always a few people to go around. I was hoping for a nice fast start for the first mile going downhill. My legs were not moving quite as fast as what the effort felt but it was still right on pace at 6:47, then 6:47 for the next mile. First 4 miles were good, but it felt a little bit tougher. 5th mile started feeling harder, and about halfway through I found myself starting to slow down and starting to feel like giving up. Now, giving up 5 miles into a half marathon on a point to point course is pretty much ridiculous because you still have to get back. Then something good happened, a small group of people passed me. This was good because I was able to pick things back up and fall in behind them. So I kept on going, not yet ready to give up. Mile 6 was pretty good also, still hanging on , finishing with a 6:49. Now, it was bargaining time, just make it to the halfway point on pace and see what happens. So, I did, halfway point and I was still ok. But then my pace started to slip and before I knew it I was way off pace. I managed to stop the slide and as I got close to the end of mile 7, I gave it all I had to get back under 7 minutes, which I did barely at 6:57. I was hoping that momentum would carry me on, but that did not work out so well. Mile 8 was 7:14. Not sure how I did it, but mile 9 came in at 6:57. So, I wasn't done yet, there was still hope. Part of me was wondering if I was affected by the altitude and I would be smart to slow down the pace so as to not totally blow it or if I was just being a baby and should keep pushing. The next mile started out pretty good, but I really slowed down going up the hill at about 9.4 miles, picked up some speed on the way back down, but still ended up with a 7:13. The next few miles were about survival, until very near the end when I picked it up for the final tenth of a mile. When I saw the finish clock, I was surprised that it was still a pretty good time. A little disappointed that it was 1:50 slower than my last half marathon but still glad that I ran a decent race considering I wanted to give up at mile 5! I took a gel just before the start of the race and I did take gatorade at each aid station but I probably should have taken another gel about mile 8 or 9.
Splits recap: 6:47, 6:47, 6:48, 6:45, 6:57, 6:49, 6:57, 7:14, 6:57, 7:13, 7:12, 7:11, 7:09, 0.11@6:41 It was quite an exciting race overall. The scenery was spectacular and I loved the drummers at about 10 miles. This was also very different from anything I have ever run before. After the race, I ran a 1 mile cool down, which I think helped. I also got one of the free 10 minute massages they were giving out.
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