Gasparilla half marathon race report.
The race went well. PR'd by about a minute for a 1:13:24 and was 4th local, which is good enough for $500 prize money at this race.
Race prep: Decided on doing this just a few weeks ago and planned to just see what I could do untapered, so didn't really modify any training in the weeks prior. I figured a 1:12-1:13 could be doable even with it being at the end of a high mileage block.
Arrived a little before 5:00 and warmed up for 4 miles. Felt kind of flat on the warmup, so at this point wasn't sure if this would be a good day or not. Guess it wasn't a huge issue because once the race started I seemed to be able to get on pace right away, though it took about a mile to get into a groove. First 5 miles loops through Davis island and I focused on cruising through this part without expending extra effort. Was keeping the pace consistent in the low-mid 5:30s so far. Once I got to the bridge exiting the island and going south on Bayshore I seemed to still be doing fine, so the mindset now changed to seeing if I can maintain this pace all the way through. Pace was staying consistent but I was now having to put in a little more effort at this point. At about mile 7 I took a gel, and after this is when I saw my pace drop for a bit, either from fumbling with the gel or the headwind, maybe both? Most likely the headwind, it wasn't even that strong, but it was enough to drag on me. Pace was now reading 5:45-5:50 and I just felt stuck there, couldn't get back into the 5:30s. Focused on getting through this part and making it to the turnaround hoping the pace would pick back up there. Fortunately it did and I was able to cruise through miles 9-13 without much trouble. I knew I had a good shot at getting under 1:14 at this point as long as I could stay in the low 5:30s the rest of the way. Pretty soon the finish was in sight and I crossed in 1:13:24. Proud of the effort today, especially since this was done untapered. This is a good sign. 7 weeks until Boston, good things to come if I can keep hitting the mileage/workouts and stay healthy. Might actually have a shot at running close to 2:30 there. Of course it depends on things like weather and if I have it on the day.
Splits: 5:32, 5:32, 5:30, 5:32, 5:35, 5:33, 5:35, 5:42, 5:43, 5:33, 5:28, 5:30, 5:26, 1:13 (0.22 @ 5:19)
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