Cascade Half Marathon Race Recap + Week 1 of Marathon Training

When I initially signed up for this race, I thought that it looked like a nice flat course for a PR. Then the Holidays/Vacation came and went without much running, and I decided that I would just run it for “fun” and hope to finish! At some point I though I might try to break 2 hours, but I have been feeling pretty sluggish lately, and really just wanted to finish!

The weather wasn’t too terrific for the drive down to Turner, but the temperature reading seemed fairly warm for January. And it would have felt warm, too, if it weren’t for the driving rain! Oh well.

This race is a fundraiser for the Cascade High School Cross Country and Track and Field Teams, so the start and finish are located on school grounds. We made our way to the school gym to pick up our packets. Packet-pickup was a breeze, and we had plenty of time to kill before the start of the race at 9am. We wandered around the indoor school areas to get the lay of the land, including the cafeteria (which served warm soup after the race) and the locker rooms (which would allow us to take “warm” showers after the race.)

Now, my bib number was 909. As in the pace needed to break 2 hours. (Yes, I knew that off the top of my head.) This is when I started to think I might just break 2 hours after all…

 
Soon enough, it was time to head outside into the driving rain. But we didn’t have to wait too long. Finally, we were on our way!

The course takes place on flat country roads, taking several turns here and there as you weave through farms, cows and horses. A flat and fast course for sure, except for that darn sideways rain! As we made each turn, it was fun to discover which way the rain would be hitting you this time! It didn’t take long before we were all drenched, but we’re Oregon runners, and so, we continued on.

I was hoping to settle in to my “fun” pace right from the beginning, unfortunately I fell right into PR pace. Oops! So, I tried to fall back a bit, but it was hard to do with all the people surrounding me. I finally found a reasonable pace…for about 2 miles, until the leaders started passing us on their way back to the finish. So I picked it up again, and before I knew it, we were at the turn-around with several boisterous spectators, which definitely pushed me on.

When I saw the time on the clock at the turn-around, I figured I might as well continue on with my current pace! And so we wove back over familiar territory, counting down the miles left until the finish. Each time we turned a corner, I kept a lookout for the school, hoping I could dry off soon. Finally, there it was! So I picked up the pace for the last 1.1 miles, and pushed through the finish line.

 
Just for fun, here are my splits from the race (along with my thoughts at the time):
Mile 1: 8:23 (Oops! Way too fast.)
Mile 2: 8:46 (Better, but still too fast.)
Mile 3: 9:11 (Better, I could probably keep this going.)
Mile 4: 9:28 (That's more like it.)
Mile 5: 9:20 (Still comfortable.)
Mile 6: 8:52 (Look at those people coming back this way; they're fast!)
Mile 7: 8:56 (Ok, under 1 hour at the 1/2-way point, I should just go for it.)
Mile 8: 8:43 (Not sure I need to go this fast...)
Mile 9: 8:34 (Or this fast...)
Mile 10: 8:33 (Well, I'm nearly there now...)
Mile 11: 8:43 (A little tougher here.)
Mile 12: 8:29 (Almost there)
Mile 13: 8:12 (Push against that headwind! Push!!)
Mile 13.1: 1:23 (7:26 avg pace) (I just want to be dry again!)

Official Time: 1:55:32 (8:50 avg pace) My second fast half ever!

 
So much for the “fun” run I had planned! I was tired, but not as tired as I had been after EWEB. My competitive spirit definitely got the best of me! I collected my finisher’s medal, grabbed my dry clothes from J, then made my way to the locker room to get cleaned up. It was definitely nice to change into some warm/dry clothes!

 
It was a great end to a decent week of Marathon training. I got all my runs in, and finished the week with 28.7 miles. Not too shabby! I might have less mileage during this upcoming week, but that’s probably ok! :)

So far I have completed 5 months of 1 half-marathon/month for 1 year! AND, since I completed 6 half marathon within 5 months, I now have 2 moons as a Half Fanatic! Yay!

Until next time!

Sneaky Sneaky

Well, Marathon training kinda, maybe, somewhat caught me off guard. We got lazy over winter break, and now it's time to jump right in! Whoa!

Luckily, we managed to squeeze in 22 miles last week, and we have 26 miles on the schedule for next week. I think we'll be ok, but going into my long run on Sunday, I was starting to worry about my half coming up next Sunday. But it looks like I'll be ok. I'm definitely not in "racing" shape, but I know I can complete the whole thing! Phew!

Also…I may have done a crazy thing. I'm a Half Fanatic, and noticed some of my Fanatic friends on Facebook were signing up for a few races on July 4th weekend. Three to be exact. So I signed up! For three half marathons in three days! Eep!

Actually, I'm kind of excited. I think it's going to be difficult, and definitely a challenge, but I really think I can do it! And when do you get the chance to run 3 halves in 3 days? A fellow Fanatic (and Maniac) is putting on the 2 weekend marathons/half marathons, and the 3rd one is the Foot Traffic Flat Marathon/Half Marathon. It's being billed as the Firecracker Triple, and you can find more information here. The 2 weekend races are capped at 100 participants each, and they will definitely fill soon! (Clearly, you can also do a triple of marathons, but c'mon now, that's just crazy :P)

Marathon training officially begins this week, so I guess it's time to get serious. My legs are starting to remember what running is, just in the nick of time!

Hopefully I'll have something fun to report next weekend!

Running Goals for 2011

I hope everyone had a good time ringing in the new year. J and I hosted our own party, and had a lot of fun with friends and games. I haven’t run since Monday, and thus can officially say I ran 801.5 miles total in 2010. Not too shabby, but I want to think bigger next year, especially with marathon training officially starting on the 10th. Eek! :)

I made a few goals for 2011. I think they are realistic, and will give me something to work for. But I won’t hesitate to adjust them as necessary throughout the year, and hey, maybe add a few more! You never know!

1. Run 1200 miles in 2011. As I stated above, I ran 801.5 miles in 2010, my first full year of running. I know I can run more than that now, and I know we’ll be training for a marathon, and thus should definitely get more miles in.

2. Complete a Marathon. Currently planned as the Eugene Marathon! I’ll reassess whether I would like to run another one after I complete the first one. Best not to get ahead of myself, right?!

3. PR in the half marathon (and probably the 5k and 10k, and definitely the marathon…automatic PR!)

4. Complete running 1 half marathon every month to complete a full year (August being the last). I started in September 2010, so I am on my way!

I’ve added a 2011 Race Calendar to the sidebar (and moved the 2010 calendar to the “Races” tab). I’ll keep updating it when I “officially” confirm my plans for races. Until then, happy planning for 2011!

Recap of my first year of running

I’m fairly certain 1-year-ago-Marya would not believe what current-Marya has accomplished this year. Several 5k’s, 10k’s, and SIX half-marathons! As of a few days before New Years, I have run 801.5 miles, and will probably add a few more on before rolling over into the new year.

Overall, I think it was a successful year! And I can’t wait to see what next year holds…including the Eugene Marathon! Here’s a run down of the past year:

January:
We ran our first running race, the First Run 5k at the strike of midnight. What a great way to ring in a great year of running! We finished in 29:16, and were ecstatic to finish under 30 minutes. Our times have improved, and we’ve certainly run further, but it was our first great running accomplishment, and I’m still proud of it!

Unfortunately, while I was finishing the Couch to 5k plan, I got a little too goal-oriented and injured myself. Too much running for my legs coupled with the wrong running shoes = injury in the form of shin splints and I was sidelined much of the rest of this month.

After purchasing some new shoes, I thought I had been magically cured, and attempted my first 1 mile race, the Be The Change Mile (pictures can be found here). I finished in about 9-ish minutes, but I'm fairly certain I can finish faster than that now… Looks like I need to find another miler to race!

The rest of the month was full of cross-training in the form of hiking and recumbent biking. Blah. I continued my shin splint self-care, and hoped February would be better.

February:
I continued my road back to recovery, with more hiking and more self-care, and I eventually got back on my feet. It was a slow, hesitant recovery, but I ended the month running nearly 3 miles, relatively pain free! And that’s all I could ask at that point.

March:
I continued my recovery this month, and made my triumphant return at the Shamrock Run, with a new 5k PR: 27:40! We also signed up for 2 races: Bridge to Brews 10k and the Helvetia Half Marathon! I must have been feeling better; I was getting ambitious!

In preparation for half marathon training, we completed our first “long” runs of 4 and 5 miles! Hey that was a big step back then! :)

We also did our first volunteer gig at the end of the month, at the Fort Vancouver Race, and we made a very important running friend!

April:
This marked our first opportunity to run on vacation, down in sunny so-cal! It was hot and I contracted allergies, which impacted my running for the rest of the week after I got home, but I still ran a successful 6 miler!

I eventually was able to breathe again, and was able to celebrate J and my one year anniversary, with our first 10k! (pictures can be viewed here) We finished in 56:07, good enough for a PR (you know, since it was our first one! :)

We finished out the month by volunteering again with friends at the Earth Day Races, and attempting a 7-miler on a difficult trail, on full stomachs, and trying Gu for the first time, and ultimately failing by completing only 5.3 miles. Oh well…

May:
We started the month with something new and fresh. Our first track workout! Later that week, I “ran” an almost-5k with my Girls on the Run buddy…Oy.

Our follow-up week included a second trip to sunny so-cal, where we failed on yet another long run, but came back the next day to complete 8 flat miles for the first time ever!

We completed our first “Tempo” workout the next week, and took part in our first of many First Thursday Runs. We finished out this very successful week with a 10-miler on Leif Erickson!

We followed up this “best week of training ever” with a very poor showing with a too-fast track workout and a terribly disappointing long run on the Banks-Vernonia trail.

We made up for it the next week with a passable 12-miler, and J totally smoked a 5k race, getting first in his age-group, and setting a new PR in 21:34! Holy smokes fasty! This also marked our 3rd volunteer gig, at the Rum Run. Overall, we completed this peak week with 26 miles, and were quickly closing in on our first half marathon!

The last week of May was devoted to tapering, and our long run was only 9 miles! Totally easy after a 12-miler! Only 1 more week until Helvetia!

June:
I started out the month with the Starlight Run with Girls on the Run…it only took us 55 minutes to complete the 5k, but hey, we beat the bus! :\

In preparation for our race, we adopted a new kitten. Hey, why not? But soon enough, it was time to get ourselves to the start line, and do this thing!

And then we did it. We completed our very first half marathon! I was slightly disappointed just after the finish, since we were so close to breaking 2 hours…but in retrospect, I think 2:01:46 is pretty respectable for our first 13.1 miles! I learned some lessons that I was able to take into my next goal race, about aid stations and fueling, as well as confidence that I could complete the distance! It was so great to complete that first half, and I think it gave me a bit of a bug for the distance, as we will see later in this recap.

After the race, I continued on with my new addiction, yoga. The week after the race was devoted to yoga only, 3 yoga classes in the first week, and I became more familiar with the types of yoga that suit me best.

We finished up a great month with the Epic Oregon Relay. It was a great fun time with running friends, and I can’t wait to do another one of these relays, maybe next summer. I still had a great time even after biting it on my last leg. I think you look pretty bad-ass with blood streaming down your leg as you cross the finish line!

July:
This month started the theme of running for fun and continuing with yoga. With no real “race” planned, we just ran/yoga’d when we wanted to, and it was really fun!

I started the month out by taking part in my friend’s Sleepover Marathon. I honorably completed my “half” as my friends struggled to complete 15-17 miles. It was a very hard endeavor; much harder than we had anticipated, but it was still fun to be with friends. We also volunteered at an aid station for the Flat Half/Full Marathon; fun with cowbell!

I continued on with fun running, finding new routes, and even getting lost sometimes. Then we decided to finally “race” again at the Bowerman AC 5k, where I got a new 5k PR (24:25) in the heat! (85° is hot to me) and got to meet Kara Goucher! Overall, a very fun month!

August:
We continued on the with the running theme of “fun”: First Thursdays, volunteering, track, all while still continuing with yoga.

And then I did it; I made plans! Well, first of all, we officially joined the Red Lizard Running Club. We’d been running with their group for awhile, so it seemed only right to make it official. And as for plans, I signed up for several half marathons, including a “goal” race for November: EWEB’s Run to Stay Warm…Soon enough I would be “training”, although I didn’t really end up following a “plan” as I did previously!

September:
I started out September by running a half marathon for fun (old Marya would say, “HUH?!”) The inaugural Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon. It was a fun time, except for that few miles of gravel…

Next up, a 10k race, and a new PR (49:47) at the Pints to Pasta 10k race. I left my old PR in the dust! Woot!

Continuing on with the shorter and shorter races, the next weekend I raced the Oktoberfest 5k, and ran yet another PR (23:28). Guess I got a bit faster than the beginning of the year!

We finished the month with a wedding, and just kept running!

October:
3 race reports, none actually “raced”.

First up: Fall Finale 5k, pacing a 30 min 5k. It was fun preparation for the next weekend’s activities, and I won free shoes! Not bad!

Next: Portland Marathon Pacing. So. Much. Fun. I ran 17 miles total with my pace group, and it was fun to see who was still with the group after a bit of a break at the aid station. I definitely want to do this again next year!

Finally: Nike Women’s Half Marathon + San Francisco Vacay. What a great way to sightsee, first walking around with J, then running a half marathon with thousands of my closest friends! I don’t think I would ever want to “race” a destination marathon, but we’ll see!

November:
The month of my new half PR. It started with a trail half marathon, our first ever race on a trail. Super difficult, but really fun! The perfect adventure for a camera! I got a lot of great pictures out of it.

I finished my last week before the race with lots of trail running. Excuse me. Lots of muddy trail runs. Super fun and super dirty. It’s what fall is all about!

And then it came, the race I've been running toward the last few months. I didn’t really stick to a “training plan”, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t train. I did track and long runs, plus other “easy” mileage throughout the week. I got my miles in, but I was still nervous! And then I ran what felt like a perfect race. Pretty even splits throughout, it wasn’t tough until the end, and I finished with a smile on my face; completely satisfied. A new PR of: 1:48:49; I’ll take it!

After this run, I officially became Half Fanatic #652, and fessed up to signing up for our first full marathon!

I also took it easy, but still managed a turkey trot, and paced a 30 minute 5k again. This race was packed, though, and I’m not sure too many people knew we were there. We still managed to get one kid across under 30 minutes, and he was definitely proud!

December:
Lastly, we have the Holiday Half; another fun run with friends. We got a great cowbell/finishers medal at the end, and I’m sure I’ll be able to use it to cheer on fellow runners at some point!

I’ve got some plans lined up for next year, but I need to get things somewhat more finalized. I’ll try to get a plan/goals post after the new year. Until then! Have a Safe & Happy New Years!

Holiday Half Run Report + Weekly Recap

Another weekend, another half marathon! ;) But first, recap of the week:

Monday:
Day Off

Tuesday:
Back to Track
This week’s workout:

1 x 600 @ 2:48 (200 recovery)
1 x 800 @ 3:44 (200 recovery)
2 x 1000 @ 4:41 (400 recovery)
1 x 800 @ 3:44 (200 recovery)
1 x 600 @ 2:48

Here’s how it broke down:

600 @ 2:37 (a little speedy)
800 @ 3:37 (a little less speedy)
1000 @ 4:41 (dead on)
1000 @ 4:44 (oops)
800 @ 3:44 (dead on)
600 @ 2:42 (strong finish!)

It was a good, dark workout. Nice to run fast again. I was afraid that I forgot how! It was my first track workout in (probably) over a month; before my Achilles started to bother me. No pain afterward (well maybe a little sore…)

Wednesday:
Fulton Pub Run
5.22 miles (9:16 min/mi)
A tad bit speedy, but it felt pretty good. Nice run with friends, and trivia afterward! Good times!

Thursday:
3.1 miles (un-timed run, with a story)
We had a bit of rain just before rush hour, which caused traffic to be horrendous. Literally the second worst commute of all time, right behind the time it snowed right at evening rush hour. That night it took me 4 hours to drive 12 miles….yeah, it was awful!

To be fair, it only took me 1.5 hours to drive 10 miles (to NW Portland) where I was supposed to be taking part in Fit Right NW Light Up the Night Holiday Fun Run. When I finally arrived, everyone was just finishing up their 5k run, and I was so upset (I absolutely hate traffic, like it tops the list of everything I hate in the world…) so I decided to do my own 5k. I had no Garmin, no plan, and no watch, so I just took off. I know I was running fast, but I didn’t care, I just needed to run.

I looped down to the Pearl District and made my way back. I got a side cramp from running so fast unprepared, and had to walk just a bit. Now, while I was driving, there was hardly any rain, and the other runners had a fairly dry run. As I was walking, it started pouring, and I was so happy. It felt good, and I felt so much better finishing my run by getting drenched!

I arrived back to the store, drenched to the bone, the raffle long past completed. Luckily, J had won me a nice reflecty beanie, and saved me a beer. I don’t even know what kind it was!

Moral of the story: Best. Run. Ever!

Friday/Saturday: rest days

Sunday:
Holiday Half Run Recap
13.1 miles: 2:19.04 (10:37 avg pace)
Pretty good run for an inaugural event! The starting/finishing area was located at Adidas Headquarters, and there were a good group of people there when we arrived at 7:30am. We picked up our race bibs and shirts, then went to find the bathroom…line. Oy! What a line. We didn’t stick around for long, since we didn’t have to go too bad, and weren’t too worried about waiting in a shorter line along the race course. There were 3 porta-potties in the parking lot, and another few at the starting line. Needless to say, not enough potties for 1500 runners. I heard it took 30 minutes to get to the front of the line! Wow!

The race started just about right on time, and we all funneled through the starting line. We started on a bit of an incline, then wove through some neighborhoods surrounding the Adidas campus. I would definitely prefer to weave for extra mileage at the start of the race versus the end! As we wove back to Greeley, we continued on to Willamette Blvd. There are some nice houses that line this road. The Willamette River was towards our left side, just on the other side of an industrial area below the bluff we were on. What I remember most about this part? THE WIND!!! You had to fight to stay upright! I was certainly happy it wasn’t raining, as I thought it might be. I can handle the wind, as long as we don’t have sharp rain hitting us sideways, as well.

Eventually we passed by the St John’s Bridge, and ran through a few more neighborhoods, and turned around at about Mile 7.5. We looped back around the neighborhood we just traversed, and made our way back past the St. John’s Bridge. Soon enough, we were back on Willamette Blvd, honing in on the finish. We turned the last corner to a nice downhill through the finish line. After we finished, we received our finisher’s medal (a cow bell! for real!) I can foresee using this medal in the future for spectating. Very cool! It was also awesome that those who had already finished, and were walking back towards the race could use them to cheer on the rest of us runners!

All in all, a pretty good race. We spoke to the race director at the end, who knew about the bathroom situation, and also knew that many of the carolers that were supposed to be along the course didn’t show up. Oops! I was a bit disappointed that there were not as many carolers along the way, but I was really having too much fun to notice they were missing until the end!

I wore my Half Fanatics shirt for the first time during this race, and got a few cheers along the way because of it. I also got to meet a few fanatics at the after party, which was fun!

K and I before the race: Race swag:

One half marathon a month for a year:
So, since September, I’ve managed to run at least 1 half marathon each month, and I want to keep this streak going for 12 months. So far I have the Cascade Half Marathon in January, and the Hagg Lake 25k in February. I’m keeping my eye out for more each month through August! If you have any “must-do” halves, let me know, and I’ll see if I can squeeze them in!

Taking it easy

My legs have been a bit tired since the race, which is to be expected, so I’ve been trying to take it a bit easy. But I’ve still gotten out for a few runs!

Thanksgiving Day:
Give N’ Gobble 5k
My friend K and I dusted off our fancy pacing skirts to pace another 30 minute 5k. A lot of people showed up to this race, and I’m not sure too many of the surrounding people knew what we were up to, but we tried to grab a few people in the last couple of miles so they could reach their goal. We even had one kid thank us at the end for pushing him through the finish! Very fun and rewarding!

I was a little nervous going into this “race” since my legs were still a little fatigued (especially noticeable the previous day for my first post-race run). But they actually felt a lot better on this day. Maybe it was the “race” atmosphere that helped! All around it was a good time! Instead of a Turkey Dinner later that day, we had pizza! Mmm!

Post-Thanksgiving Weekend:
Hot Buttered Run Volunteering (Bag Check!)
Although I didn’t run this race, I had a great time volunteering, and it looked like all those out there actually participating had a great time too. There was a 5k and a 12k, and everyone (of legal drinking age) got delicious Hot Buttered Rum at the end (hence the name). Before or after the race you could enjoy the Festival of Trees in the Pearson Air Museum. Overall, a great festive event!

Last week:
I ran a few times this week, and even did a long run yesterday. Group run from Lululemon! My legs were pretty tired the whole way through, but I made it, and feel fine today!

After the run, J and I attended the Holiday Ale Festival during the Civil War game (in order to avoid the crowd.) Good planning! My favorite of the day (got 3 tasters of it, it was so delicious!):
Hopworks Brewery Kentucky Christmas!!

Next week:
Next weekend my friend K and I will be running (for fun) the Holiday Half. It looks like a really festive fun time! (Carolers!) Until then!

EWEB’s Run to Stay Warm Half Marathon Race Report

Freezing temps, wind, and rain. The weather forecasters could not have been more wrong! It turned out to be a beautiful, clear, sunny day! I was getting pretty nervous in the days leading up to my first goal race in a long time; I was really just hoping there wouldn’t be any ice or snow to slip me up! But I couldn’t have hoped for the weather to be any better than it was!

The race didn’t start until 9am. And, since we drove down the night before, that meant we got to “sleep in”! (Anything past 6am is sleeping in to me!) I ate some of a cinnamon roll (since the oatmeal included in the continental breakfast was inedible) and started feeling a bit nervous.

We got to the packet pickup area at a little after 8am, and waited in a brief line. The pickup was inside a heated building, which was nice, but the room was a bit small for all that was going on, and I think with the large turnout, it got a bit jumbled up in there. No worries, though. I got my bib number, picked up my chip, and stayed inside to be warm. Half an hour before the start time, I used the (real) facilities, and just counted down until it was start time. Soon enough, it was time to line up, so all the half-marathoners headed out to the start line.

The race started right on time, and there was plenty of room at the start for everyone to spread out. After we finished weaving through EWEB’s River Edge Plaza, we found ourselves on the bike paths that would make up most of the race course.

Just after the start (I’m in the green shirt!):

About a mile into the race, we crossed over the Willamette River for the first time, and went around a bit of an extra loop on the North side of the river. We came back around toward our initial river crossing near Mile 4, where we met up with the 10k and 5k’ers. At first, I thought this would throw me off my race, but it was actually a bit of a mental boost. Up until this point, I felt like there were a lot of people passing me (although I would eventually see many of them later), but it was pretty empowering to be able to pass people running a shorter race than me. It definitely made me feel fast.

I went into the race wanting to hold an 8:30 min/mi pace, but I definitely started out faster than that. I was just hoping I wouldn’t pay for it later.

Mile 1: 8:02
Mile 2: 8:20
Mile 3: 8:15
Mile 4: 8:31

My friend K was nice enough to jump in with me from Mile 4 to Mile 7, to keep me company, and make sure I was feeling good. I was definitely feeling good, and able to keep a little bit of a conversation up at this point. Everything felt nice and smooth, and really pretty easy! J cheered me on from Mile 4 and Mile 7 (he was helping drive K around, and also there to cheer me on!) so I had him grab my gloves and hat since it had warmed up so much!

Meeting K and J:

Running with K, still feeling good:

Mile 5: 8:33
Mile 6: 8:21
Mile 7: 8:16
Mile 8: 8:04

About a mile after K took off to meet me on the other side of the river, things started to feel not quite as easy. Mile 8 is also where we had about a 0.4 mile out-and-back, which felt a bit discouraging, but after we made it through that, we crossed the Mile 9 marker, and crossed over the river for the final stretch.

Mile 9 wove through some neighborhoods, but soon enough we found ourselves back onto the bike path system. Mile 10 is when it really started to get hard. I told myself “Only 5k to go!”, but really, 5k seemed like an awfully far way to go! I told myself just to keep going. Although I was feeling tired, I still sped up a bit during this section, which may be because I was passing a few familiar faces.

Mile 9: 8:09
Mile 10: 8:01
MIle 11: 7:54

I think my friend K and J saw me during Mile 11, so maybe that’s why it was so quick? But I know I saw K again about halfway into Mile 12. She ran with me to the finish, and I’m so glad she did. I was struggling, and mentally I just wanted to slow down a bit, but K kept me focused on my breathing and on keeping a smooth, even pace. I stayed strong, and the time just kept clicking away. Soon enough, K told me to charge ahead, so I did! One final turn and I could see the finish line. I totally didn’t catch up with the 2 girls in front of me, but that’s ok. My legs definitely gave all they had. Finally I crossed, with a smoking new PR!

Getting really tired! Can you tell?:

Me and J at the finish area:

Mile 12: 8:12
MIle 13: 8:13
Mile 13.1: 1:54 (6:48 avg pace)

Garmin Results:
13.28 miles: 1:48:44 (8:11 avg pace)

Official Results:
13.1 miles: 1:48:49 (8:19 avg pace)
Age Group: 6/44
Overall: 139/462

(Apparently, my chip didn’t work. But I’m not too worried about it. I was only a few seconds behind the start line, and those few seconds didn’t put me over into the next minute! ;)

I’m really proud of myself for this race. I ran it smartly, and really think I gave it everything I had in the moment. It was a great day to race a half marathon, and I definitely killed my time from Helvetia! Part of that is because the course was pretty flat, part of that is because I’ve learned to run smarter, and part of that is because I’m faster.

It was a great race, with a good course and good organization. And It was for a great cause! (From the website: “All proceeds benefit EWEB's Customer Care Program to help income-eligible customers who are having difficulty paying their utility bills.”) It was also a pretty great preview of a good portion of the Eugene Marathon! (Which J and I may or may not have signed up for…)

Since this was my 2nd half in 15 days (and also my 3rd or 4th within 90 days), I qualified to become a member of the Half Fanatics. Say hello to Fanatic #652! :)

I want to continue running half’s (hopefully 1/month for a year, if I can handle it in my schedule!) I really like them, and not all of them need to be races! :) We’ll see how I do!

In the meantime, it’s again time to run for fun! My next half is the Holiday Half on 12/12! And I have a turkey trot on Thanksgiving!

Hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!