Carmel Half Marathon Race Report (4/21/12)

PR pace for 6 miles, then I lost it. Not a bad run though. I really like the course: more rolling than Monumental, but not as hilly as IU. It would have been nice to have had more spectators on the course, but that's not a deal-breaker for me. Forecast was for a chilly morning, overcast and windy. I wore my Nike compression shorts, s/s BARA tee, teal arm-warmers, a throwaway cotton sweater, and compression socks. No Garmin: the battery in mine won't last more than 2 hours and we'd forgotten Aaron's, so I was running with my Timex. From the start of the race, this felt like a good day. Felt so good, that within a hundred yards of the start, I got teary. I'm not sure why today was different, but my legs just felt different, better. It was like I didn't even need a warm-up. I wish I knew what made the difference. The first 6 miles were a dream. 9:59, 9:50, 9:47, 10:10, 10:02, 9:56. It felt effortless, easy. First 6.55 miles in 1:06:21. Not sure what happened next. Mile 7 took a turn for the worse: 11:09, 10:20, 10:21, 11:15, 10:54, 10:21, 11:24 (1.1). Second half in 1:09:09. Not a huge positive split, but I usually negative split. I guess that I went out too fast? It felt like a good pace, but maybe I just got caught up in the excitement of race day. The finish area was a bit disappointing: no mylar blanket (I was FREEZING once I stopped moving and the wind cut through my wet clothes), finish line food consisted of bananas, a bag of chips, and cheese/peanut butter crackers. Meh. Scored two gnarly blisters on my foot, I was still shivering a half hour after my hot shower (we had to stand in the cold wind for 20 minutes waiting for the shuttle), and my shirt is gigantic but I still count it as a successful day. I even managed to run the whole course without stopping at a portalet. Overall, I like the course and it's definitely PR material. Better training, 10 degrees warmer, and no wind and I think it could be something big for me. Next year?