Well better late than never. Back in January I was debating if I should run the Mcleods half marathon. My excuse for not running it was the weather forecast(predicting 18f at race time). I was also experiencing some soreness in my left calf, which I will elaborate on later. I procrastinated as long as I could, and finally signed up on the last day for online registration. I also have to give some props to Ashland Dave, as I made my final decision while listening to his "Running In The Center Of The Universe" podcast. I dont remember his exact quote, but it said something to the effect of, " you cant get a finishers medal unless you get to the starting line. That was just enough to push me over the edge.
Now to the race. It was actually a little warmer than expected, 23f insted of 18f. To be perfectly honest, after the first mile, I never thought about the cold. My goal was to run a sub 2hr half, which meant I needed to run around a 9 minute per mile pace. So I started at the back in an effort not to get caught up with the faster runners and go out to fast. It turned out well, however it took a little time to get through some slower runners and walkers.
I set my Garmin for 1 mile splits and quickly found my 9 minute per mile pace.The splits where as follows.
mile 1 9:02
2 8:56
3 9:09
4 9:01
5 9:04
6 9:11
7 9:00
8 8:57
9 8:59
10 8:58
11 8:51
12 8:52
13 9:08
As you can see, I was pretty close to the 9 min per mile pace through out. With mile 11 and 12 being my fastest. I really felt strong after mile 12 and was planning on picking up the pace a little for the remainder of the race. However, I didnt realize most of it was on a single track trail. I didnt mind running the trail, I just could not find a rhythm when I got off road.
I finished the half in 1:58:10, and actually felt really strong throughout.
However, I am now nursing a sore left calf, that wont seem to heal. I have cut my mileage way back, and have really been focusing on stretching. Hopefully I can get that behind me, and focus on the next race, which has yet to be determined.
4 comments:
Congrats on your half!!! Great job :) Hope that calf finally heals up!
Good job with the race. You should email Ashland Dave and he'll read your race report in his next podcast. You could also get your race report on the podcast The Race Report. It is sure to inspire some other runner.
Well done Burt! Christina shot me an email and siad you mentioned the show in your blog. Thanks for listening, do you remember which episode that was? I need to go back and listen to it to remember what I said! :)
Great job! Very consistent splits, and you kicked ass on miles 11 and 12. Halfs are my favorite races. Not too short, and not too long. Congrats on breaking 2 hours.
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