The 10 days leading up to the race were a bit of a mess. Work was even more nuts than usual, I strained my back lifting a huge dog, the girls had a soccer tourney out of town, and the one day I could have gotten in a run, we had nasty winds and rain. So I got in a quick 3 miles on Saturday just to make sure the legs remembered how to run, then we jumped in the van for the drive. We literally made it to packet pick-up minutes before they packed up the bibs and shirts. I checked out the running store that hosted packet pick up (reminded me of IRC) and bought a fantastic orange running cap (perfect for alerting hunters to the fact that I am NOT a deer), some calf sleeves, and a cheap pair of throw-away running gloves. I wore all of that lovely newness on race day.
Race forecast was perfect: 38 at the start, clear, no rain, no wind and it was expected to be in the low 40's by the time I'd be finishing. I planned to wear my tried and true Ink n Burn shorts, my long-sleeved IRC shirt, new calf sleeves, orange cap, and the throw-away gloves and sweatshirt. I didn't know the area at all, but the race description was that it was a flat course. I had checked out last year's results so I knew that it should be a small race, less than 500. This really sounded like a perfect race for my PR attempt. I'd have no external excuses for a bad race.
I didn't sleep well Saturday night. I think it was a combination of the upper back strain and my excitement about race day. In spite of that, I woke up feeling refreshed and ready to go. It didn't hurt that due to the time change, I had an extra hour in my favor. I downed my breakfast, packed up my gear and Aaron drove me to the staging area at the Mason High School. We hung out in the school cafeteria until it was time to start the race, so nice to have a warm place right at the starting line! I loved this!
Five minutes before the race started, I joined the crowd outside, and walked less than 50 meters to the starting area. The starter made a few announcements and we were off. No hoopla, just the starting gun. The 5k'ers and half marathoners all started together but even with that, it was a very manageable crowd. It was a bit of a shuffle to the timing mat but I was running at pace as soon as I crossed it. No bottleneck of racers to fight through, just run your pace. Ah, the joy of a small race.
My plan for the race was to run it solely based on effort. I was wearing my heart rate monitor and Garmin but I turned off the heart rate alarm and had the display set so that I couldn't see my pace, only total distance, total time, and current heart rate. The only feedback I got on pace was at each mile when it would beep and the display would show that mile's pace. Most of the race, I just didn't look. The first mile though, I ran 9:29. Ummm, unexpected. Faster than expected, but running on effort and it felt good. The first mile was mainly along a 4-lane road, but traffic was pretty sparse at that hour and we were able to run in the far right lane for most of it. Just before the first mile ended we made a turn into a lovely city park. Gentle hills, gorgeous fall landscapes and a couple of ponds. Just after the first mile, I stopped long enough to shed and discard my sweatshirt. I saw my favorite spectator in the park: a great blue heron about 20 feet off of the pedestrian path that was fishing at the water's edge. He just watched the runners go by, we didn't seem to bother him in the least but I thought it was awesome to see HIM. I've never been that close to a heron, good thing I'd left my phone behind or I'd have been tempted to get his picture. Second mile in 10:36, not bad considering I spent almost a minute fighting to get out of my sweatshirt.
Things just settled into a rhythm at that point. I knew that the pace would need to be faster than comfortable to get that PR so I just kept pushing at what I though was my limit for the distance. We finished the 3 mile loop in the park, passed back by the high school as we headed out on the out and back that would take us by Kings Island. We were running on sidewalks along a 4-lane city street but it wasn't bad at all. It's a nice residential area, it reminded me of Carmel. There were a few spectators out, probably family members of other runners, and a couple of folks had set up music for us. For the most part though, it was just the runners with an aid station every 3 miles. The leader of the half marathon came by as I was at 4.5 miles, he would have still had about 4 miles to go himself. Second place was a couple minutes behind him, then it became a steady stream of runners heading back for another loop of the park.
I took a gel at 5 miles and tried to remember how much farther it was to the turnaround. Was the turnaround at the halfway point? We got to 6.5 miles and I still couldn't see the turnaround. I wish I'd known when to expect it because it did bother me a bit not knowing. Oh, well. Just follow the runner in front until they turn us back to the start. Keep pushing. It's getting tougher but that's expected. The course really is pretty flat, just a few small rollers. Now and then there'd be a slight grade but all very doable and to my liking. I leap-frogged with a few runners, but for the most part was passing more than being passed. Feeling strong, but there was a part of me that worried I'd start to falter after 7 or 8 miles. It's happened before, was this going to be a repeat?
The dullest part of the course was the part that paralleled Kings Island. I think we were running through/near the big tennis pavilion where they hold pro tourneys. Parking lots are b.o.r.i.n.g. even if you're running on nicely groomed pedestrian trails beside them. Ugh. Finally made it to the turnaround there though. I think that was at about 7.5 miles. I knew there was still a long way to go, but that was a big mental boost. Ah, time to go back home! All of the rest of the route would be newly familiar territory and I knew it was all easy terrain. No surprises (not that there'd been any, but there could have been!) from here on. Still holding my pace right at the 10:00 pace, give or take a few seconds. I took my second gel at mile 9. I was feeling good but figured at that point, I may as well eat it so it would be on board for my final push. At mile 10, I spotted a portolet and took a very quick break. No lines for potty breaks are awesome! Took care of business and back at the running without any time wasted in line. Did I mention I love small races?
At this point, I had 3 miles to go and started doing the math to see what I needed to do to get that PR. It was going to be very close and I knew that I needed to bring it up a notch to hit it. Mentally, I was completely in this race. Physically, I was getting tired. Was I 50k tired? Not even close, so keep pushing. It definitely was becoming a mental race for me at that point. I was trying to figure out how the final loop through the park would go. Our first loop through it had been 3 miles, but we still had a mile to go to even get to the park. I tried to visualize the path but couldn't see how they'd make the loop a mile short. Was this course going to be long? Have to run to the finish, however long it might be, so I keep plugging along. When I start to feel my strength wane, I think of the bracelets I'm wearing. One is for Jen, a member of my online running forum who is fighting her own health battle. Another is for TJ, a young man with epilepsy and CP. I also think of Kylie, my young buddy with I Run 4 who has had 3 open heart surgeries. These friends are my motivation and my inspiration. They are my heroes. I draw on their strength and want to honor them with my effort today.
As we got into the park for the second loop, we approached what had been our first aid station. I saw that they HAD changed the route from the first loop. There was a right hand turn that I'd not even seen and they had us take it. Several cheers from the volunteers at the aid station as they reminded us that we only had 2 miles to go and I went ZOOM down a nice downhill. Homestretch. Keep it up. I checked my time. I needed to average under 10 minute miles to get that PR. My legs felt like they were moving in slow motion though. I'm asking them for more, but it's like that dream where you're trying to run faster but you're barely moving. Go, legs, please just go a little faster! Mile 12 in 10:09. No, gotta go faster than that! Passed the gal that was in front of me, passed another, can finally see the school. Mile 13 in 9:52. I'm so close.
I need to cover the last tenth in under a minute to get the sure PR. Oh, no, we have to go all the way around the outer edge of the parking lot rather than taking a direct cut to the finish. I start to feel defeat, I can't do that, it's too far too fast. I feel a flicker of doubt. Then I dig deep and decide I'm not going down without a fight to the very end. Just go. Just go. Just GO.
I see Aaron, he's cheering and taking pictures but I don't even look at him, smile, or wave. I have a job to do and all of my focus is on that job. I'm glad he is there, but I can't show it. I see the race clock. Aaron is running alongside still taking pictures. I see 2:10:50. I know that my previous PR is in the 2:11 range, but I can't remember how many seconds. Can I make it? I'm giving all that I have as I drive toward the finish. I get myself all the way through the finish chute before I hit my Garmin to turn it off. I see 2:11:12 and I am 90% certain that is a PR. As Aaron runs up to me, I have my hands in the air in triumph. I am celebrating the PR that I think I've earned. Elation. Smiles. Great big giant happy smiles. A few minutes later, my official results are up and I compare them to my old PR. 2008 time: 2:11:27. Today's time: 2:11:09.9 PR, baby, oh, yeah.
Mile/pace/avg HR
1 9:30 158
2 10:36 165 (shedding of the sweatshirt)
3 9:51 169
4 9:56 168
5 9:41 167
6 9:49 170
7 10:01 168
8 10:02 168
9 10:16 166
10 10:20 166 (bathroom stop)
11 10:11 166
12 10:09 166
13 9:52 170
0.13 1:02 (8:04/mi) 175
13.13 mi 2:11:09.9 166
