Race Recap Ramble:
Love Training More takes the Jersey Shore!….
Road trip! With elites no less! Still am not sure what the privileges actually look like but am sure that hanging with elites is cool and fun 😉 This is about a race recap, but it wouldn’t be complete without a shout out to Expo fun and splurging, great carb loading adventures and a super windy group shakeout run.
Race day:
I will never complain about port-a-pottie lineups again! The positive thing, is we needed to group problem solve, made new friends and managed to barely get in to our corral on time. That pit stop was totally worth it and took away any fear of maybe having to make a stop on the course even if it meant being stuck in the last corral … yes it’s chip timed, but ick!
Had totally planned… I mean perseverated on the necessity of music to not crash mentally. I had no confidence in myself that I could talk myself out of that mid-race voice that questions my every move. A good thing I tried to pair my music before I checked my bag… the wireless buds were totally dead! Checked them in the bag and didn’t have to run with this useless distraction…positive, I guess.
Got in to the corral and realized that they were starting each corral at a different time…. how had I missed that? I usually know every detail… oh no! What else had I forgotten. Race nerves were explosive at this point but thank goodness Allana was there…. I could at least pretend out loud now that everything was cool. Calming to have a familiar face.
0-5K: “Fit on a Teenager Leash” – Coach said no Redmond’s Rules (I need to write a book about them ….). BTW, I think some of my peeps are growing to appreciate them !
Focus on not going too fast. Everything felt goodish.
- Soak in my surroundings. It’s amazing how green and truly beautiful this part of New Jersey is. Tree leaves are out, and tulips are huge. Dogs everywhere. People really like their dogs here. Gave myself the time to think about the great dogs I’ve had the pleasure of knowing and excited about the puppies coming in to our lives (Linda… you are so lucky with that gorgeous mutt busting into your life!)
- Great to see all the locals out cheering us on. Appreciate it.
- Listen to the conversation: still marvel at how people can talk so much when racing. How do they remember what they are supposed to do if they’re talking sooo much?
- Watch the runners: How is that guy going to finish a half marathon wearing running sandals and jean shorts?
- Water stops:
- The plan…. I will not walk through the water stops.
- What actually happened: Didn’t skip the first one, really don’t need it that early, but wanted to practice with a sip. Fail!!!! Squished the cup like I was supposed to but got more air than water and choked!
- Ok….new plan: I’ll need to take a good sip of water for the next ones so will walk 10-15 seconds to drink. I’m Ok with that because shockingly I’m a bit too fast to start. Besides, this always feels like I’m getting a little break and if this is all the break I need by the end of the race, I’d be very happy!
BUZZZZ…. what was that! OMG!!! Was that 5k already? ….and I was a bit too fast (of course). Kind of pleasantly shocked as that went by so quickly, but now I have to find my « true » race pace. The one I haven’t been able to find for my whole training.
5-18K: “Fierce” – Now I really need to buckle down.
Time to focus on getting that critical first fuelling and nothing seems to be where it’s supposed to be … or when it’s supposed to be. At this point I realized I just needed to go with the flow. Can’t control this minor thing and it shouldn’t be bothersome! Getting fuel in me at the exact minute I was planning should not make a difference… right? Right!
Music would be nice right about now (darned wireless) so time to get back to soaking in my surroundings:
- Lots of pretty houses.
- Super fans dispersed along the course & they are troupers.
- More children.
- More dogs.
- More flat.
- Starting to appreciate the twisty turns or the course.
- Flat and straight looks better on paper…oh oh-negative voice!
- Where’s the positive? OK. This is waaaaay better than going up Devonshire!.
10k mark- Things are starting to get harder and I’m a little bit bored. Feeling my calf muscles… maybe I should have worn compression. Oh no…. the voices started again, and they are way too soon! It’s not the Boredom Miles Coach got me to think about. I really wish I had my music! No time to panic but too soon to pull the big guns out.
Time to think about the awesome people and supporters in my life. You know who you are! I thought about my challenging workout runs, the early hours, the cold, the hills, the laughs, the tears, the lessons learned…. breathe.
Oh, and then the bridge…. this is a flat course. I mean flat! How a tiny little incline for a tiny little bridge could feel so hilly was perplexing me. It felt like a Purcell’s Cove hill. It was nothing like that of course. But I’m starting to realize that a flat course is not as easy as I bought it should be! Then I hear Coach’s voice: “It’s hard because it’s hard!” Of course, it is! This made me feel better because hard is normal 😊
Now the funny moments come: the Trump punch bag, the musicians, the human bacon, lots of signs (some familiar and some original…. really wish I could remember them, but I know I laughed out loud at a couple of them).
At the 15k mark, I knew that this wasn’t going to be THE GOLDEN DAY. The elusive sub 1:50 was not within my grasp, but I wasn’t feeling awful. Determination set in to not let a PB slip through my fingers. The race plan clearly laid out what to do between 16 and 18K and it was all about 2nd Ave and whether I was feeling golden.
I got to the16k water stop, deciding I needed Gatorade (I don’t like Gatorade!) Why this stop had to mix them up, so we couldn’t figure out which was which, I will never know but I sincerely apologize to that nice man who had to get one for me as I snapped at the end of the line without having found one cup along the way!
OK time to snap out of this, the race was not over yet. Scrolled through the screens to get my distance (I really have a hard time with miles). At least that part of my plan is on track, the mental map is matching the distance…..NICE! Rechecked the pace to make sure I was going to at least maintain race pace. WHAT! I had stopped my watch! It looked like it was only for about 20 seconds. I looked up and before I could panic, I was immediately comforted by the church group handing out water bottles…. just because. Gotta love these impromptu groups coming out and support. I then imagined some uplifting gospel music…
2nd Avenue comes up. On the map this looked like a short stretch, but the more time I spent on this straight flat road, the longer it felt. It felt like it would never end. Then the whispering started. BUT I was ready for Fear to whisper in my ear that I was not ready for the storm and I was practicing my answer: I am the storm! 2nd Avenue was not going to get me.
I AM THE STORM!…PUSH POP…I’VE GOT THIS!…I WILL NOT LET THIS STOP ME
….besides I still have my final push to execute!…BUZZZZZ
18-21K “Fearless Warrior” Show time !
I was never happier to hear a buzz from my watch telling me a section of my race plan was done. That was a long section. The little buzz felt electric. 2 turns and up a little hill and burst on to the boardwalk along the Jersey shore. The little coastal wind is welcome and makes me feel at home. The beautiful Atlantic Ocean is right there…hello sea salty air 🙂
Only 2.4k left and this was it. Time to conquer that fear of implosion and leave it all out on that course. I had absolutely nothing to lose…. well almost nothing 😉
Still electrified from the buzz and getting a good smell of the ocean I was able to gear down and began picking off the runners in front of me. I lost count of the number of runners I passed. Not very many spectators but I convince myself that every single police officer is cheering me on specifically;) I felt as great as one could with her lungs exploding, my legs pumping and me keeping every single negative thought out of my head. I was going to cross that line like Shalane Flanagan… expression and all!
I hear a “You’re almost there. Just around the corner”….Awesome!! That would have been a great way to end the race, BUT it didn’t quite happen that way…
That corner happened to be as crater-filled as a bluenose roadway in April, my legs started feeling wobbly and all I could think about was don’t stop, don’t trip. Thankfully, the finishing chute comes into view and I’m back on solid ground. Head up and Coach’s voice: “Do not touch watch until after finish line is crossed!”
I’m done PB achieved!! I hear Coach, Allana and Linda calling me over. Oh…must turn off watch 😉 I thought I was jumping up and down with excitement (even though it wasn’t my golden day), but it was all in my head. I was told that I was a bit too non-chalant about the whole thing.
Gratitude:
Thank-you Coach for your patience, your humour, your grace and your belief in me. Thank-you Barry….you were right. Thank-you Jersey Crew (Allana, Linda, David and Donald)…this trip taught me that interrupted best laid plans do not have to side track a good race. Thank-you LTM et al running peeps….I know our runs don’t always correspond but your support in person and on-line is so important. Jody and Allana…6AM crew runs rock! Thanks Mom…just because! It takes a village.
Summary:
- I ran this one solidly (my Strava K splits have never been so evenish for me).
- I finished strong – My 3 fastest K splits are between 17 and 21K (I am sure my 21st K would have been in there had I been able to ignore the potholes;))
- I need to learn how to drink on the run!
- I need to eat more carbs leading up to the race.
- I am closer to a sub 1:50 than I thought. I overran the course.
- Race Nails CAN make you run faster….
- I felt a bit fiercer this time. I am the storm!
Time to rest, get back in the gym, have some summer fun in the shorter distances and prep for NYC! Coach tells me there are many hills in my future! Woohooo!