Some 2011 Race Reports

Blah. I am just not a good blogger. I've actually had a lot to say in the past year, but for some reason the motivation to write would initially surge and then quickly vanish by the time I sat down at my computer. So by now, probably no one is reading this blog anymore (Mommy? Andrew? Are you still there...?)

Anyway, as a frustrated and somewhat unfulfilled runner, I thought it would be therapeutic to reflect on some of my 2011 races. This blog post actually began as a Richmond Marathon race report, but the writing was going slowly because the race was a disappointment. As the weeks passed I ran three additional races which went pretty well (as I had no expectations), so I decided to blog about those, too. All in all, I think I ran 10 races in 2011 - three marathons, one 12 miler, and a bunch of smaller races.

Richmond Marathon

Allow me to rant and ramble a bit. One of my running friends and I used to have the same marathon PR of 3:58. In the last couple years we have both improved on this PR. For me, it's been a "chipping away" process, getting down to a 3:57 last fall and then a 3:53 last spring. My friend, on the other hand, blew things out of the water when she dropped 18 minutes off her previous time and qualified for Boston. "How?" I asked her. "You just have to really want it," she said. She said diligent training that included speedwork and other quality workouts was key.

Well, damn it, I want it! I don't even mean qualifying for Boston - I just want to get below 3:50. I first broke the 4:00 milestone in the October 2007 Columbus marathon, and I haven't seen significant improvement since then. I must be in a running rut - time to try something new. I decided a good "something new" would be this Hanson Marathon Training Plan (http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-244-255-13791-0,00.html), AKA the "less is more plan," which makes no sense because there’s nothing “less” about it. Average weekly milage is 40+ miles, with a peak at 50+ miles. One of the key weekly workouts is an 8-10 mile marathon goal pace run, which for me is 8:45 min/mile. I had been rocking these workouts, running 10 miles at 8:29, 9 miles at 8:35, 9 miles at 8:40, and 9 miles at 8:29 in the four weeks before tapering – hilly routes, too! Long interval speed work is also emphasized - my workouts included 6 x 1 mile repeats (~8:20), 3 x 2 mile repeats (~16:40), Yasso 800s (at 3:45), and various types of ladders and pyramids. The "less" part of the training plan apparently refers to the fact that the longest long run is only 16 miles. BUT we're talking 16 miles after 6 consecutive days of running hour-plus long workouts. And endurance has never really been a problem for me - speed is what I need. I had run 13 marathons, but never trained for one like this before. I was confident that 3:49 was mine!

Race morning was sunny, chilly, and windy. Andrew was running the 8K, which started an hour before the marathon, so after seeing his race start, I had a lot of time to kill (we had not been able to score one of the many hotels walking distance to the race start.) I was happy to find an unlocked VCU building where I could hang out and escape from the cold and was thrilled to find clean, line-free bathrooms and a water fountain. Awesome! I hung out here until 10 min before the start, when I checked my bag and headed to the starting corral.

For some reason, I wasn't feeling as mentally psyched as I usually am at a marathon start. I actually felt a tiny sense of...well, dread. I knew I was essentially trapped for the next 26.2 miles and that the last 5-6 miles of that would be hell. I tried to shake off these thoughts and told myself to focus on the scenery of this new course and the energy of the crowds. We were off, and I settled right into my goal pace, though just a tad slow. Here are my splits for first 7 miles:
Mile 1 - 8:44
Mile 2 - 8:42
Mile 3 - 8:50
Mile 4 - 8:47
Mile 5 - 8:48
Mile 6 - 8:55
Mile 7 - 8:07 (all downhill)


Miles 8-11 were a pretty scenic part of the course along the James River and through some wooded neighborhoods. However, the end of this section is also where I really felt the hills start to slow me down. Between miles 10-11 someone had a sign that said "Remember your reasons for doing this." Um, reasons? Is meeting a self-centered somewhat arbitrary goal a good reason? I think I understand why people run for charity.

Mile 8 - 8:44
Mile 9 -8:45
Mile 10 - 8:48
Mile 11 - 9:11 (uphill)
Mile 12 - 9:03 (also some hills)
Mile 13 - 8:54

By the halfway point, I realized that it was gonna be really really really difficult to make my goal. I reminded myself of that time I ran something like an 8:30 mile 23. The 20's don't have to be a slow down - I can do this! "You trained for this," I told myself. But as the mile markers ticked by, I became more disheartened. I didn't hit a wall or anything, but I just couldn't keep up the pace I thought I had trained so hard to maintain:

Mile 14 - 8:52
Mile 15 - 8:44
Mile 16 - 9:23 (nasty bridge)
Mile 17 - 9:03
Mile 18 - 9:29
Mile 19 - 9:24
Mile 20 - 8:57
Mile 21 - 9:34
Mile 22 - 9:45
Mile 23 - 9:45
Mile 24 - 9:23
Mile 25 - 9:50
Mile 26 - 8:39 (Andrew and the downhill helped out here!)
Finish - 1:32 (3:56:48)

I finished with tears in my eyes (I didn't actually cry because I was SO GLAD to not be running anymore). I thought of all those nights I was at the track and everyone else had cut the workout short and gone home; those 10 mile tempo runs where I wanted to slow down but didn't; and especially those Friday morning runs, sandwiched between Thursday night's 8-10 mile tempo run and Saturday's 12-16 mile long run. I wanted to skip those Friday runs so badly! But I didn't, and I told myself "this will all be worth it - it's making you stronger and faster." WTF? So, I'm still feeling down on marathoning and haven't decided my spring racing plans yet. When I do decide to run another marathon, I probably won't tell anyone about it, another strategy my aforementioned friend used that may have helped her, at least mentally. Maybe I'll also run for charity or something. Probably not overtly or officially, but some sort of thing where I make a pact with myself that I'll donate a certain amount of money if I make my goal. I really believe that a large part of marathoning is mental, and this might help.

Education for Eve 5K

Speaking of racing for charity, the Education for Eve 5K in Chapel Hill is certainly a worthy cause. I'm not much of a 5K runner, and when I do run them, I promptly forget about them. Andrew wanted to run this race because a few of his coworkers were doing it. I decided to run it, too, even though it was only one week after Richmond. Short race report here - I'll cut to the end: I actually passed Andrew a few hundred meters before the finish (haha!) and finished in 23:56, a 7:43 pace on a hilly course. So, maybe all that marathon training did something for my speed after all. I can't remember my 5-K PR, but this might be close to it.

Run at the Rock 7-miler

The Run at the Rock trail race was just plain fun and had yummy soup at the finish. Andrew and I ran it together in ~1:11. We picked up the pace toward the end, but for most of the race we were in no hurry. I liked that we got sweatshirts instead of tee-shirts. Also, my race number was 69.

Couch Mountain 5-miler

The Couch Mountain 5-miler is also a fun race, part of the Carolina Godiva Track Club Winter Series. The course heads to the top of "Couch Mountain," allegedly the highest point in Orange County, then winds through more Duke Forest trails and country roads. There are burgers at the finish line and like all Winter Series races the entry fee is $5. This year I somehow managed to finish in 41:10, a 8:23 pace. Not bad for a hilly course and no recent speed training! Although, it's not as much an improvement over my previous time as I thought: I finished in 41:54 three years ago.

Now Andrew and I are getting ready to kick off the new year with another Winter Series race: the New Years 8K, which also winds through Duke Forest. I still haven't decided what running goals, if any, (or life goals, if any) I'd like to set for 2012. Maybe I'll just take things easy this year. Happy New Year, everyone!