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!