Misc. details: Warm up before race: 1.4 miles easy w/ some short strides. Low to mid 30's F & very foggy. First mile of race at easy pace. Hills at mile 1, 6, 10.5 (big one). 1 gel. Driving time to race: 1:35 each way. Time listed above is from my Garmin (haven't checked for official time yet). No chip timing, old fashioned hand entries. The race finishes with an up hill climb, hate that.
The good news is that I love fog and it was very foggy. The bad news: no swan sightings. I could hear them out there in the fields but it was just too thick to see them. (This race is known for it's traverse through an area where migrating Trumpeter Swans stop to feed and rest.) The very good news is... PR's!! Six minute course PR and 1 minute PR for the distance. When I woke this morning I was pretty sure I would race this course at a hard level. I just felt really good. I can honestly say I left nothing on the course; I worked really hard. 2:04 does not bode particularly well for a BQ (4:05), but I've got over 3 months of hard work between now and May, so maybe I'll have a shot. The most exciting aspect of the course PR is that I think it reflects the fact that this is the very first winter where I've really kept my running up. My 1 minute PR for the half-m is such a wee little thing, but I'll be running the course of my previous PR in March (Mercer Island Half), so we'll see what that race has to say. :) Not much to report about the race itself. This is a well organized but small race, with (imo) a fast field of runners. (Who else wants to race a Half in the dead of winter here?) This is my third running of this course, and I have always felt that the bulk of the runners are very fast and competitive. Not great for my psyche, being a slow one, but it's also very inspiring to me.
Most of the course runs through farmland, with a bit of woods and small town. There is a pretty lake around mile 6-7. Not much to see today, due to the fog. I had one real problem during the race, and I believe it may have cost me. There seemed to be a lot more cars on the road this year than I remember. A police car came through at about mile 3 and warned us all to keep to the right, after which we all went single file while the cars whizzed past us. It was frightening, but the worst consequence was trying to pass people. After starting the race slowly, I began to steadily pass other runners by about mile 3 [insert crazy happy dance here]. But it really screwed up my pace to do so without being run over. Trying to keep my pace between 8:55 and 9:10, I'd hover behind someone at 9:30, getting all stressed about having to slow down, then speed up to 8:45 or even 8:30 to pass them, getting winded in the process. We made a turn around mile 5 and the traffic lessened, but there were still enough cars (going quite fast) to keep us crowded to the side of the road. So much for practicing steady pacing! Gr.
One thing I love about this race is the gym. The race is held at a small college in Mt. Vernon, WA. The runners get to stay inside in the warmth until it's time to warm up. After the race, runners may use the showers and locker rooms, and the race provides hot foods in the warm gym -- perfect for a January event. My splits: 9:56, 9:04 (downhill), 9:24, 8:57, 9:01, 9:19 (small, steep hill), 9:22, 9:14, 9:07, 10:06 (long hill),10:08, 9:46, 9:04, last .1 @ 9:25 (uphill finish).
I've go to scoot. I'll come back for editing and adding later when I have time. :) Sno [More details added above.]
With the long driving time, I just had enough time to enter my draft report, take a short nap, and get tidied up for our evening out. We had a lovely dinner in Seattle and went to see The Pearl Fishers. Excellent production! But even with the nap, I was dead tired by the time we made it home.
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