Cleveland Marathon Photos

Landon and Gina navigating the aid station at mile 22

Just after mile one

Frank, my legs are behind him ;)

It was pretty chilly before the start!

Almost Finished

The man in his underwear on the left beat me!

Andy and Dawn during the marathon around mile 22

GP and the long waited for Boston Cream Pie

Hawthorne and my new Coach at the SERC Afterparty

Thanks to my dad for taking photos while I ran and to mom for her excellent cheering skillz!

Cleveland Half Marathon "Race" Report

So I still have multiple posts waiting to be written detailing fun stuff that has been going on the past few weeks or so but I feel compelled to interrupt all of that for a quick race report from yesterdays Cleveland Half Marathon.

I have only raced the Cleveland Marathon once and despite the race being local I honestly had no desire to race it again. I feel that the race has left a lot to be desired in the past. Particularly in the areas of traffic control, crowd support, and a course that is lacking in appeal. But there is certainly something to be said for being able to roll out of bed and drive to a big race rather than having to travel so I found myself towing the line for the half marathon yesterday.

Having just finished Boston and pacing the pig my goals this summer are to work on speed. To help with that a friend of mine from SERC is helping to coach me and he instructed me to run the half this weekend, with a goal of holding 7 minutes or better for 10 miles, then running how I felt, holding the pace if I felt good or jogging it in if I didn't. I really didn't want to pay for the race and was tempted to "bandit" and run 10 miles with my friends then cheer for everyone and help pace in a few friends. But as a pacer and a writer in the local running community I decided it would be better to do the race legitimately. Through my OSF connections I was able to score a comped entry (Ask and ye shall receive, I contacted our editor Wednesday on the off chance I could get a discounted entry and she was kind enough to get me into the race for free) and I will be donating the money I would have spent on the race to a charity this week.

Since the race wasn't in my original plan I didn't really have much time to worry about it, and on coaches orders this was just another workout, so no taper. During the week leading up to the race I ran a good effort track workout Tuesday and a hard 5 mile tempo on Thursday as well as recovery runs Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. (Note I haven't been on the track or run tempo since Boston 4 weeks ago!)

My parents and our friend BG were in town this weekend so Friday night we were up late playing games and drinking wine. Saturday I push mowed the lawn and got in a light run, we even ended up at Dairy Queen Saturday night for ice cream before going to bed. Friday and Saturday I also spent time at the marathon expo working the Team in Training booth Friday and the Ohio Sports and Fitness booth Saturday. So really not my typical pre race plan, but with no expectations other than a good hard workout it was what it was!

I felt pretty sluggish Friday and Saturday so I wasn't expecting much on Sunday. My plan was to run with Frank for ten miles since he was aiming for a sub 3 full marathon, and I would see if I could hold onto him through mile 12 and suffer in from there. He was supposed to be aiming for 6:47 pace which I thought might be a little fast, but I was really hoping to run 1:29 despite the fact that I wasn't supposed to "race" I still liked the thought of a PR and breaking 1:30. Coach okayed running with Frank so I lined up with him at the start and when the gun went off I stuck to Frank like glue.

The miles went by pretty quickly yesterday. Frank was going a little faster than what he said he planned to do. He kept commenting every mile that we were too fast and should back it off, we'd pay for the pace later. But the pace felt pretty comfortable, we were around 6:37 most miles which is a pace I seem to gravitate to lately in races shorter than 13. I convinced myself that I should just treat this like any other Sunday run where I would not let Frank pull away from me. And since Frank kept saying we should slow down but kept going the same pace I just stuck with him.

We were getting lots of cheers from spectators excited to see a "lady." They kept informing us I was 2nd. I assumed they hadn't seen other girls ahead as I was pretty sure Beth Woodward was ahead of me and I could see at least one more girl just ahead of us with her i-pod on. Occasionally people would cry out go "girls" or "ladies" and I would assume another girl had caught us, but one of the guys in our group was wearing a pink t-shirt and pony tail and despite his facial hair I think they were mistaking him for my competition :) We had a nice little group of 5 going and although we surged a bit in one of the early miles catching up to the girl in headphones and our friend CK we eventually backed it off to try and retain Franks planned pace.

We were pretty chatty and just enjoying the day. The weather was great, nice and cool, and other than some wind really it couldn't have been nicer. I wore my new Moeben sleeves for most of the race but rolled them down when I started to get too hot (They are fun white tiger striped!). I was pleasantly surprised that the pace felt doable and I wasn't having any trouble keeping up with Frank (he went on to win his age group and break 3 hours handily!). If only I could run all races with my friends I think I would do so much better!

Around mile 10.5 we end up on the shoreway and we start to go uphill. Frank is a bunny on hills and I am not so I started to fall back from him (but knowing I had met coaches goals of sustaining sub 7 pace for 10 miles I was sticking to the plan). I was a little mad at myself for forgetting to don sunglasses because the sun had come out and was right in our eyes. The wind was a bit of a factor from 10-12 as you climbed the shoreway the higher you got the more wind there seemed to be. This section is pretty barren, but at least I had the knowledge that I was closing in on the finish line.

The whole way friends had been cheering for us. Another bonus to running a local race, your friends are out in full force volunteering. My parents were stationed at mile 1 and 12.5 and Salty even came out to cheer us on after finishing the 10k. She let me know I was 2nd female around mile 11 and I asked her if she was sure since I was still convinced Beth was ahead of me. Wyatt was catching up to us after a bathroom break and was encouraging me to finish strong.

Miles 11 and 12 were 7 minutes on the dot and I could still see the girl in headphones ahead, but she wasn't really within reach without hammering pretty hard and having a bit of luck. I was enjoying myself and didn't wasn't to push it too much, since coach instructed me to train through this race I was pretty sure he wouldn't have any sympathy for me this Tuesday on the track if I ran myself into the ground. So I just tried to hold my pace and see if I could hold onto 2nd place.

The half marathon splits from the marathoners after mile 12 and I was on my own, losing my fun pack for good. I had caught up to a man in underwear who spectators were ogling and they cried out to me that they knew why I was holding such a good pace. As if! We dueled a bit but he flew past me in the last half mile as I passed my parents and my coach. There were still two more turns before the finish and the straight away down E 9th was right into the wind and holy crap it was strong! Finally hit the last turn and cruised into the finish with them announcing my name and I watched the clock to see 1:27:52 (Looks like the kinks on the results have been worked out for the most part but for those that haven't seen updates I didn't actually win the walking division, I ran (really) and my 10k split was 41:10, not 40:10). Far better than what I expected and a really nice breakthrough on a day where I hadn't put any pressure on myself. That time is definitely my best PR of any distance so far so hopefully that means there is more of that to come!

I got whisked away to the media tent to be interviewed for the paper (there was some definite paraphrasing there but still fun to get a little plug in the plain dealer this morning, thanks to JT for mentioning me on the news, that was unexpected and very kind!) but eventually made it back to the car and my parents before heading out to cheer at mile 23 of the marathon course and then to pace in GP and Landon. Had a blast cheering for my friends and although GP missed her goal I was happy to run with her to the finish and see her get her Boston Cream Pie that she has been waiting for forever!

I must say that while the half marathon as an event was very good I was still disappointed in the traffic control in the last 4 miles of the marathon. We almost got hit by a van and I know runners had to slow or stop for traffic at several intersections. There has just got to be something the race and city can do to make that better.

Celebrated everyone's fine performances at the SERC after party which my parents kindly attended with me and even let me stay on to party without them as they headed back home to Michigan. I can't mention enough how very blessed I am to have such supportive parents. I only hope we can find a way to repay the kindness over the years ahead as they enjoy retirement! It would be nice to spoil them a bit after all the spoiling I have received over the years.

Living up the performance aftermath. I am really stoked to have run so well despite no real expectations. Thanks to everyone that volunteered and cheered this weekend! And congrats to all those that ran!

Flying Pig Marathon Pacing Report

It has been 10 days since I drafted the title for this and several other posts that I have been intending to write. Figured it was about time I posted something and I just received Pacer Jim's email including emails he received back from runners about our pace groups. I was really excited to receive so much feedback and super stoked to help so many runners at the flying pig. So now seemed like as good a time as any to finally get up a pig report.

This was by far my best pace group so far. I think runners at the flying pig really had a handle on a realistic goal for the race (maybe those hills convince them to back off the goal a wee bit). The group was huge, I don't have any idea how many runners I started with but I know the group was large enough that many following our group were not right with me. (Thank goodness my voice carries and our signs are so visible!)

I really had fun at the flying pig. I was decked out in my bright yellow asics outfit, under armour shoes (more about that later), and a visor with a pig snout on top. What had been predicted to be a rainy day was actually quite lovely with just a few sprinkles before the start. I kept a large group up through miles 20+ and this time decided that after mile 20 I would start telling stories about Boston to help encourage any females going for the BQ to stay with me and get pumped up to get that BQ! I think I really helped quite a few first timers and veterans to achieve their goals at the pig and the feedback was quite nice.

Below is my pace report I sent to Jim and it is followed by the feedback I received.

1. Your performance, including the start line
1. I give myself a B+
Pace was pretty good throughout the day. I struggled to get right on though. from about 10 on we were always 20-30 seconds ahead of overall pace. For every mile I would get us close to overall the next would have a downhill or a large crowd causing pace to go back. probably should have walked every other water stop instead of jogging them. I did a good job of letting everyone know every mile where we were and informing new comers of my chip delay. Start line I think I did a good job, never had that big of a group before so I did my best to make sure everyone knew the drill. There were two miles that were faster than 8:30 or were short (mile 11 was either short or I was way too fast) and I feel badly about that although I don't think I lost anyone those miles. I did a great job of motivating and really had fun with this group. By mile 25 I sent those with me ahead and I encouraged those behind me to reel me in and finish ahead of me.

Just want to comment here that I think the pacers must have done an excellent job getting people to sign up, this was by far the biggest pace group I have ever had, and by far had the most people prepared to actually run the pace they chose.

This time around I saved my stories about the Boston marathon for the final 6 miles and kept telling the group they had to stay with me through 20 in order to hear the stories. Not sure if it helped but I had at least 5 women get to Boston that ran with me up through mile 25.

2. Your group
2. My group was just plain awesome. I had so many people I think a lot of them were just trailing the sign. The 20 or so close enough to directly talk to did a great job. This was the longest I have ever held onto runners with almost all of them still with me at 22. I encouraged them to stay accountable to their neighbors in the later miles and that helped. I had three guys who finished just a few minutes behind me and one of them commented that the two young guys grabbed him and helped pull him along after a bathroom stop.

Had 5 women that I know of make it to Boston. At least one PR who I talked with (A TNT gal who came up to show me her watch finish time). And quite a few first timers that came within 3 minutes of their goal time.

Pleasant surprise in the first mile realized I had a college teammate in my group running the half. At least 4 half marathoners that I am confident went on to make their pace.

inspirational/funny story, one gentleman in my group dressed in a t-shirt, driving shades, and a necklace with a peace sign (and long hippie hair with a beard) started the race with me. I thought for sure this guy would finish slower than 4 hours but encouraged him throughout. His ankle locked up early and he informed me that he had only trained 5 weeks and had taken the last 9 days off. Well with encouragement to stretch his ankle out every few miles and slowly catch up he managed to finish in about 3:53. Just goes to show that you really can do anything you put your mind to.

3. Suggestions for the race director
3. Better instructions for the water stops. The Gatorade and water were not always in the same order and half the stops used plastic water cups. Not ideal. I found it awkward that the stops were not every mile. not sure how much they can do about placement, but more consistent distances between aid makes it easier to instruct the group when aid is coming up.

they should get more pacers here, definitely a 3:10 and a 6 hour group. People really seemed to use the groups at this race.

The start is awkward and the berm in the middle of the road is dangerous, this happens several times, they need a better method of marking these center berms.

pace team uniforms that distinguish us as a part of the marathon. The yellow certainly was visible, but some sort of connection to the race would be nice.

4. Suggestions for the pace team
4. people liked having the pace bands so definitely bring those back.

we discussed this but perhaps provide our own signs and bibs and charge extra to the races. It was awkward using other race bibs etc.

Thanks again for the opportunity to pace! I had a great time and was glad I could help some people with race strategy before hand at the expo as well as get so many of my group to their goal time.

Check out the awesome feedback (and thanks to Jim for the opportunity to pace and sending out the feedback, since I will be pacing 3:40 in the fall at Akron it is nice to know what the runners enjoyed and what I can improve upon)!

"I ran the half-marathon in Cinci on Sunday and was in Elizabeth's pace group. She did an awesome job, so much so in fact that when I finished I told my husband that I hardly even noticed the hills! She was very encouraging and her enthusiasm was quite motivating. You are fortunate to have her as part of your pace team! So are those of us who she paces! My goal time was 1:55 but I was able to pick it up in the last 4 miles (thanks to Elizabeth’s encouragement as they veered off to continue the marathon) and finish in 1:48.58.
Please pass along my thanks to Elizabeth. Will I see some of your pacers at the Marine Corps Marathon in Wash., DC in October?
Thanks again!"
CO

"Please let Elizabeth know she was awesome! I hung with her quite a bit, and she encouraged me and a friend tremendously. She had great running advice along the way -- I learned a lot. She saved her "Boston" stories for the last 5, which was great. She was a big part in getting me to my goal of qualifying for Boston, helping me save my energy for the last leg. I was even able to go a little ahead of her in the last few miles, finishing in 3:48:15! I didn't say much to her during the run, so am not even sure she realizes how much she helped. Thank you Elizabeth!!! Keep running!"
AM

"I started out with elizabeths group but lost her around 4.5 - 5 mile mark. I guess I was running faster than her and was ahead for some time. That being said as the marathon went on (my first) around 22 mile mark Elizabeth pulls up still cheering me on and encouraging me as well as the others in the group. I finished behind her slightly – finish time 3:50:20. not bad for joining a pace group of 3:50:00. Kudo's to Elizabeth. Totally enjoyed the race. Please let Elizabeth know I was sorry for moving ahead. I continued running and lost her in the other runners. I did not slow down until I hit the invisible wall HARD!"
ML

"Hi Pacer Jim,
I just wanted to drop you a quick note to let you know how WONDERFUL Elizabeth my
3:50 pace leader was for this past weekend's Flying Pig Marathon! She was so motivating and helpful throughout the entire race! Thanks to her my hard work over the past 17 weeks paid off and I'M GOING TO BOSTON!!!! Please pass on my thank you and let her know what a fantastic leader she is!
Sincerely,"
KP

"Hey Jim,
I ran with Elizabeth yesterday in the 3:50 group. I needed someone to get me in to qualify for Boston and I made it! 3:48:58, I am SO EXCITED. She was really awesome. I paced for the first time this year, Little Rock, AR, 4:45, and I'm a fitness instructor at our local gym, so I can appreciate the effort that goes into blowing sunshine up peoples' behinds for four hours. She was really upbeat, very informative about what was happening, about to happen......always encouraging and "coaching", short strides, save your energy, etc. Her confidence in running and the race spilled out on to us. Those last few miles were kicking my bohunkus, and she would turn back and power me on. I drove eight hours to get the job done and she was a major part of it happening. Great race, I loved it. THANKS!!!"
LT

"Hi there,
I recently ran the Flying Pig half marathon. I was between the 3:45 and 3:50 goal, so to play it safe, I started with Elizabeth in the 3:50 group. I really enjoyed her during the race. She talked the entire time which made it easy to know where she was on the course even when I couldn’t see her. I was very sad to leave the group at about mile 4 because I really enjoyed running with her pace group! I am scheduled for several more halves this summer and will be running the Chicago marathon…do you know if she will be pacing any races in Chicago?
Thank you,"
CS

"Just wanted to drop a line and say that I had a great time yesterday following along with Pacer
Elizabeth and the 3:50 pace group. I was running the half-marathon and used that group to pace me up through the big climb @ the flying pig. She was great to run with and I had a great experience running with a pacer for the first time. She was a wealth of experience and info, and was fun too :) She kept the pace well, and was good about letting us know where we were and what to expect. I did lose her a bit climbing after mile 6 and before the half and the full marathon's split up, but I was at the top in a time, and was able to cross my finish in my goal time! anyways, just wanted to say "Thanks" for the great job with the pacers!!"

"Just wanted to say thanks, and that you did a great job pacing @ the pig this weekend. I was one of your half-marathoners, and I came across well ahead of my goal! Thanks it was a blast!" JP

Pace Group Instructions

Hey kids if you are looking to run with a pace group Sunday at the Pig just get to the start a bit early and look for us holding out signs lined up behind the start in order or pace. We will be in place at 6 am. Gals will be in bright yellow asics outfits, guys in red. Pace groups start at 3:20 and go up to 5 hours. I'll be the one holding the 3:50 sign and wearing a pig snout. Just come up and say hello. Definitely for this course it is better to go out a little slow. The hill from 5 to 10 will be tough but after that there is plenty of flat at downhills to let you pick up the pace.

Good Luck! Hope to see some of you Sunday!

Oh and if you do use a pacer Sunday at the Pig or at Pittsburgh and you think they did a good job email pacerjim@hotmail.com and let him know. We can always use the feedback so we can continue to keep pacing great marathons!

Here Pig Pig Pig

Have I mentioned I am pacing the pig this weekend? Yep two marathons two weeks. This one should be a bit more laid back though. My main goal, other than being a perfect pacer, is to locate and wear a pig snout for the race. Bring on the fun in Cinci this weekend! 3:50 group will definitely be the group having the most fun out on the course!

Driven

I want to follow up my Boston recap a bit to explain where I am at. I want to emphasize that I feel I ran a great race for my current fitness level and for how I felt on race day. I can't lie and say that I felt stellar on race day though, because I didn't, and my last post is my best attempt to convey how I felt. I am thrilled that I can run a 3:16:30 on a day when my legs weren't feeling it. This is a huge step in the right direction. It's these races that make you realize that when your fitness does come together and the taper works properly and you arrive on race morning with fresh legs and high energy a big break through is inevitable.

I have some aggressive goals for my marathon career. Since I started running marathons in 2004 I have dropped 23 minutes off my time, or almost a minute per mile. That is huge and if you had told me in 2004 I would eventually run a 3:16 at Boston I would have probably laughed at you. But as an athlete and a competitor with each new goal I attain I am driven to push further. My desire to attain faster times never fades. If I wasn't driven to get better I wouldn't have gotten to the point that I could run how I did last Monday on a day when I wasn't really feeling it. So while 3:16:30 is a fantastic time that I am proud of, I wouldn't be true to myself if I thought that was good enough for me. Now I know I can run 3:16. I want to see how much better I can do in the future.

So I guess my point is that a little disappointment isn't a bad thing. It's those little disappointments that can drive us to come back next time and work even harder. Each marathon is a lesson learned and fuel in the fire to train more consistently and to work harder to nail the next performance.

Approximately 35,000 steps in the right direction

Boston this year was different than years past. My training mileage has been more consistent this spring, if lacking in speed a bit, but I didn't come into this race feeling particularly fast or confident. I was optimistic that I would PR by quite a few minutes, but I wasn't confident I could run at the level I desire to be at right now. I set my race goals conservatively so that I wouldn't have a repeat of Richmond, and it turns out it was probably good I did that because I ran the best I could on the day and was on the slower edge of my race goal (in ideal weather).

In past years at Boston I got so wrapped up in the excitement of the race, the crowds of runners in the city, the advertisements, the camaraderie of my local running friends. This year it just felt like something was missing for me, the ads weren't as good, there was some strife getting everyone together pre race, the expo was just a bit too crowded, it felt like a lot of rushing to wait around. I don't know what it was, but it definitely had an effect on my race. In years past at the start line in Boston I literally got chills. This year, nothing. I can honestly say I didn't get any boosts from the amazing crowds this year until the final 5k. From the start my gait felt uncomfortable and by about mile 10 my left hamstring was slightly aggravated. I did get little smiles here and there on the course thankfully. For some reason the accents of the crowds this year made me laugh. Hearing little kids with their Boston accents shouting "Go rahners" made me smile. I enjoyed the large crowds yelling, but made a conscious effort not to let that dictate my pace, maybe I was just trying to be to in tune with my effort and I should have used the crowd to bolster me a bit.

For the most part I was just tuned into myself this year though and I can honestly say I didn't have a clue how the day was going to end until the final stretch. I didn't micromanage my pace, I just ran at the effort I thought was appropriate for how I felt. Thankfully that effort was where I intended it to be based on my race plan. I would look at the Garmins average pace every mile and make sure it was around 7:30. I told myself not to look at the splits through the hills, and for the most part stuck to that. I started taking water at mile 6 opting for water every other mile from there. I took 5 electrolyte pills spread out over the course and started taking gels at mile 12 and every 4 miles after that (12, 16, 20). (I had a nice rookie move dropping one of my gels around Wellesley when I was trying to take my first gel, thankfully the course had gels at 17 so I just adjusted the plan and took my caffeinated gels (Rocktane, it seemed to work well, I will use this nutrition plan again) at 12 and 16 and used the race gel at 20) My energy levels were great the whole day, but something was just "off." At the half I knew a 3:16 was possible since I crossed around 1:38 but I wasn't feeling peppy and I was uncertain of an even split.

What did go well this year is that my quads held up to the course for much longer and with each mile that my quads didn't hurt I got more certain that I would run 3:16. I focused on smaller strides on the downhills and on the uphills I focused on trying to "glide." I used an image of my friend Frank gliding over the Sunday Solon hills to try and improve my pace and strides over the hills. Last year before mile 12 my quads were already thrashed. This year I made it to mile 22 before the usual quad soreness seeped in, and my calf didn't cramp up until mile 24. I did my best to put the hammer down after mile 21 but was uncertain if my quads or calf would give out on me. Despite that I ran the last 7k of the course the fastest of the day and was so glad to finally get over Heartbreak Hill and race the last 4 miles of the Boston Marathon. This was the first time that I did enjoy the crowds after Heartbreak. In the past I have felt like I was just surviving to the finish. This year I was pushing hard to get in under 3:17.

It's really hard to explain how I feel about this performance. On one hand I am elated, I ran an almost even split race on a course where runners typically slow 4 minutes on the back half. I did a good job mentally adjusting my effort where needed to respond to the course, when the opportunity was there I did attempt to draft into the wind. I ran a 6 minute personal best for the distance. I know I am blessed to be able to run so well.

On the other hand I never really got any race day magic on the course and my stride just wasn't comfortable. I know I can run faster than I did, but I know that I ran the best I could for how I felt on the day. I think in retrospect I was very unsure of my training leading up to the race, and unsure of my fitness level, I think no matter what I ran on Monday I was likely to be a little disappointed because I honestly feel I was in better shape last fall and I didn't get to cash in on it. Now I am struggling to get back to that fitness level and beyond. In order to get faster I am going to need to work really hard on trusting that I am capable of meeting more aggressive goals. No one is holding myself back but me.

I know this isn't the usual race report, but I am not really sure how to describe the day in usual terms, when everything felt so unusual.

What I will say about my pacing effort is that I do believe in order to run even splits on the course in Boston you have to go out easier than you feel. But there is not much room for error. You will slow down from newton up through heartbreak. You can count on that 10k being slower, but you have to have saved your quads in the first half for a final push once you crest heartbreak. I am really glad I finally figured that out and I was so ecstatic to be able to race hard the last 7k at Boston this year.

I have unfinished business on this course and I will be back next year. I have high hopes since last year Frank ran a 3:16 here and this year he returned and ran 3 hours. I think I figured out how to run Boston well this year, next year I want to return and race Boston well.

The Facts Boston Marathon 2009

Not trying to leave anyone hanging here on a race report but I am still mulling everything over. I think it takes a few days to really process the race with an unbiased mind.

I had yet another fun weekend in Boston this year and there was lots of partying afterwards. I made it into work yesterday on two hours of sleep and managed to stay awake for about half of the cavs game before passing out on Gina and Neils couch (Thanks for letting us watch the game at your place guys, and super thanks for the tasty dessert and pizza!). I was so exhausted, just not any way I was going to find time to get in front of the computer for a lengthy report. Work is busy and I have a few other deadlines, not to mention a messy house that are taking priority this week. But I wanted to get in a quick post with the stats (since I am a freak) and a few thoughts on the race.

The Facts:

3:16:30,
7:30 pace,
6 minute and 16 second PR,
3935 out of 22849 finishers,
341 out of 9302 Females,
284 out of 5023 Age Group (18-39 Females),
10th female from Ohio

I believe this is the most evenly paced race I have ever run in any distance. I averaged only two seconds slower per mile on the back half. (For comparison last year I averaged 18 seconds slower per mile and in 2006 I averaged 35 seconds per mile slower on the back half)

I executed my planned race effort perfectly, I went out intentionally slow the first mile, even effort through the hills, and brought the hammer down after the hills.

After a quick survey of my mile splits versus the course elevation, my race effort plan, and my personal strengths and weaknesses, I am confident that I ran the smartest race possible for how I felt on the day.

My Garmin was slightly off from the start and got further off as the day went. Not sure if this is from weaving, water stops or what, but regardless I think the races 5k splits are a more accurate look at my pacing since each mile has a lot of elevation differences in this race, while most of them are net downhill it varies greatly from mile to mile, and even through the hills from mile 16 to 21 there are miles in there with some flats, so mile splits on this course are not going to be even.

I did not micromanage my pace while on the course. I did look at my split most miles, and at the 5k markers I looked to see what my average pace was to verify if I was meeting my goals.

2009	Splits	5k Splits	5k pace	Overall Pace
5k	0:23:28	0:23:28	0:07:33	0:07:33
10k	0:46:45	0:23:17	0:07:30	0:07:31
15k	1:09:52	0:23:07	0:07:26	0:07:30
20k	1:32:59	0:23:07	0:07:26	0:07:29
Half	1:38:02			0:07:29
25k	1:56:05	0:23:06	0:07:26	0:07:28
30k	2:19:51	0:23:46	0:07:39	0:07:30
35k	2:43:41	0:23:50	0:07:40	0:07:32
40k	3:06:40	0:22:59	0:07:24	0:07:31
Finish	3:16:30	0:09:50	0:07:13	0:07:30

More to come on evaluating and recounting the day soon. I leave you with a few great pics from around mile 15.


Thanks to Lloyd for getting these great shots!

AT&T Athlete Alert

Event Information:
Event:	113th Boston Marathon 2009
Runner:	Elizabeth Hansen
Latest Results:
Location Time Pace/mile 10km 0:46:45 7:31 Half-Marathon 1:38:02 7:28 30km 2:19:51 7:30 Finish 3:16:30 7:29

All times are unofficial. Times may vary in post race official results.

AT&T Athlete Alert

Event Information:
Event:	113th Boston Marathon 2009
Runner:	Elizabeth Hansen
Latest Results:
Location Time Pace/mile 10km 0:46:45 7:31 Half-Marathon 1:38:02 7:28 30km 2:19:51 7:30

All times are unofficial. Times may vary in post race official results.

AT&T Athlete Alert

Event Information:
Event:	113th Boston Marathon 2009
Runner:	Elizabeth Hansen
Latest Results:
Location Time Pace/mile 10km 0:46:45 7:31 Half-Marathon 1:38:02 7:28

All times are unofficial. Times may vary in post race official results.

AT&T Athlete Alert

Event Information:
Event:	113th Boston Marathon 2009
Runner:	Elizabeth Hansen
Latest Results:
Location Time Pace/mile 10km 0:46:45 7:31

All times are unofficial. Times may vary in post race official results.

Boston Bound

Yep I am all packed and ready to fly to Boston. Leaving tomorrow night and coming back bright and early Tuesday morning (that will be a rough flight and work day!).

Taper madness has settled, all the real workouts are done. This is the first marathon training program I have gone through where I didn't have some sort of injury or soreness during the training which makes me feel like I probably did something right. Could have done without the 2 weeks of sinus infection, but I ended up averaging around 59 miles per week during the weeks leading up to taper and I got in a lot of strong long runs. Tempos and Track left something to be desired, but they were consistent and I am sure they were beneficial.

Played with all the nifty pace predictors this week to affirm my goals. As a pacer I have seen way too many runners fail to achieve their goals because the goal they set for themselves was a bit too lofty in the first place. I really wanted to set myself a realistic goal for this race as I do not want to be let down again like I was at Richmond. I don't feel like I am in quite of good as shape as I was before Richmond, but I am anticipating much better conditions in Boston (Looks like high 40s and light rain so far, perfect!) and I am planning to utilize a better pacing plan this time around. The predictors have me anywhere from 3:08 to 3:18 (discounting the few crazies on either end, 3:04 and 3:25 WTF?) .

I'm feeling cautiously optimistic about racing Monday. I think my training and predictor races (Youngstown, Malachi, Martian 10K) have me in shape for a 3:13 to 3:16 effort. My plan is to try and take it out conservative for once. Sand bag for at least the first half, and I would love to actually run aggressively the last 4 miles after I clear the Newton hills (I have always struggled to maintain pace after 22 at Boston). I have a good feeling about the 3:13 goal which is 7:23 pace. As long as I don't peter out on the hills I am really hoping for the 3:13 and since I did a good long run at 7:25, I think this is very attainable. But if conditions are bad or it just isn't my day I hope to at least avenge Richmond and come in sub 3:20. No 4 second PR please. I would like at least a few minutes for all this hard work I have done!

Bib number is 9385 so I should be starting around 10:09 AM on Monday. The Boston website should have athlete tracking on race day. I am also racing as part of the Vertical Runner team so if you are bored feel free to track my other teammates too! http://www.bostonmarathon.org/

Even more than racing I am looking forward to a fun weekend with running friends. Very excited for Solar to do her first Boston and can't wait to listen to all the smack talk and resulting SERC PRs after the race. We've got at least 3 additional guys going who are first timers from SERC this year which is awesome.

And I am counting the seconds until I get that post race dessert and drinks! I've had two beers in the last 12 weeks and cut out desserts two weeks ago. I am so ready for a nice glass of wine, a margarita or two, and maybe even some fun girlie shots! And if I can find a huge helping of tiramisu I am certainly not going to turn that down either! After all that bring on the dance floor! I am so ready to party!

Good luck to everyone racing this weekend. And thank you so much for all the well wishes! I really am blessed with so many wonderful friends and family supporting all my craziness year after year and race after race.

Martian Meteor 10K Race Report

Not ready to take off my warm clothes!

Two weeks to Boston so that means it was time for my last race leading into taper. Since I did the Martian 10k last year I figured doing it again would be a great way to compare my fitness to last year (plus the race is fun, they give out these wild shirts with aliens on them and they put blow up aliens all over the course). Well they actually changed the course this year, so what I had hoped to be a direct comparison to my fitness last year turned into more of an estimate. The course covered a bit of the same ground, but there were a few extra turns and a few more (small) rollers. I headed out Friday night to run the new course just to check it out, and other than being insanely windy it was a pretty nice course.

Saturday morning I was a bit lazy and slept an extra hour, waking 2 hours before the race. Ate a small breakfast and headed out. My stomach was a little iffy so for Boston I definitely need to eat 3 hours before. It was chilly out and I hadn't brought anything to race in except for my running skirt and my VR tank. Thankfully the sun came out and that outfit actually worked out well for me.

Spoiled as always my parents came to the race to cheer and chauffeur. I got in a 20 minute warm up while they read in the car. Did a few stride outs at my desired 10k pace, changed into my training flats and headed to the start. Stripped down and lined up a few rows back from the front of the pack. They cater to elites at this race, comping entries and putting up prize money for 1-5th overall, 1-3rd masters, and free shoes to 1st in each age group. So it is pretty competitive, and I definitely didn't want to be in anyones way. I didn't realize at the start they also had a 5k, so a few gals near me were actually in that.

My speed is a big question mark right now since I have been sick and my training hasn't really focused on speed in quite awhile. I was hoping to run faster than last years 41:17 and give myself a bit of a mental boost going into Boston. Well it was really windy out and I think I left my race legs at around mile 12 at the Youngstown half a month or so ago. I need to get my racing hat back on before Boston for sure. I ran pretty well yesterday, but I definitely could have raced better.

Mile 1 went well, it was slightly uphill and a bit into the wind. I tried to relax and get into my target pace (6:26). I was just a hair slow at 6:30 and was running about 16th gal. Saw my dad around mile 2.5 and waved and tried to push to stay with a gal in blue who passed me. I was hanging tight just behind her and a guy I am pretty sure I ran with last year. Before mile 2 I realized there was indeed a 5k race as runners came back towards us, and three gals just in front of me peeled off to the turn around.

Just before mile 2 my shoe came untied. I decided to let it go, with such a short race tying my shoe would have added at least 20 seconds to my time. The wind was kicking up and I probably should have moved left and tried to tuck in behind the few runners around me but I knew we were making all right hand turns on the course and it seemed silly to add distance running on the far left. Mile 2 was 6:37 and I started to let the untied shoe get to me a bit mentally falling back from the gal in blue.

The next mile turns onto a main street before running down a highway ramp to mile 3. Pushed to get my pace back down taking advantage of the downhill on the ramp I managed to eek a 6:31. From there I think I just got in a zone and couldn't crank it up to get out of it. The next mile is boring and you run out and back on a boring road, but at least you could see all the runners ahead of you. I counted about 10 gals, all but one(The gal in blue) of which had yellow bibs indicating they were running as elites. Ran a 6:44 for mile 4, which happily was earlier in the course than I thought. There is a slight uphill in this mile and it winds through the woods, I had lost contact with any runners around me and had obviously settled a bit on my pace.

Took a sip of water at the aid station and tried to up my effort during the next mile. I was right behind one guy and knew I was letting him dictate my pace as I watched the girl in blue get further ahead so I pushed ahead of him and tried to up the effort through the wooded path and the slight downhill. My efforts were not rewarded though and I hit mile 5 at 6:42. I tried to turn it on the last mile into the wind and I got passed by two guys. I did pass one female, but I am not sure she was even in the race, if she was she was hurting bad and pulled over to walk within a half mile of the finish. Coming through mile 6 in 6:45 I convinced myself I needed to treat the last .2 like I was running on the track and did finally manage to get my pace down, running 1:21 (6:07 pace) into the finish. I finished in 41:11, so unfortunately not really a drastic improvement over last year. Hard to tell whether that is an indicator of my fitness, an indicator that I am not strong in the wind, or an indicator that I need to suck it up and run a bit harder. But it is better than being slower than last year at this point in the season!

Placed 12th gal and 3rd in my age group (It said I was 6th in AG at the finish so I didn't hang around for awards, I could have scored a hat, bummer!) which is also about the same as last year. Would have been nice to at least have been running near some more people, but other than the gal in blue and a few guys who caught me in the final mile it was pretty lonely out there. The next closest girl was almost 2 minutes up.

Since this is a prep race for Boston I did take a few key things from this.

1) Put some damn zip ties on my race shoes before Boston.
2) Eat earlier
3) If it is windy I need to draft off someone

Also if the three races I have done leading up to Boston are indicative of my fitness I should be aiming for 3:13 to 3:16 at Boston, and while that isn't quite where I desire to be, I am glad it is at least faster than where I was last year. Now I just need to actually follow through on that in 2 weeks!


Coming into the finish

March Madness

And no I am not talking about basket ball!

The month started off strong with a great race at Youngstown but a week later at Malachi the start of a sinus infection brought me way down. I struggled to train (stubbornly) through it for a week before finally caving, going to ER, and getting some antibiotics. The runny nose and clogged sinuses were really nothing to the energy drain everything caused. I felt like a complete zombie at home, at work, and on the run for two weeks straight.

Two weeks later I am starting to come around (Thankfully!) but I am disappointed that what looked to be a promising month really was more of a struggle leaving me feeling lackluster about my build up to Boston since I am now moving onto my taper. I had really hoped to have 12 consistent weeks leading up to Boston and my mileage took a bit of a nosedive the past two weeks. Not awful, but just not where I wanted it to be.

Obviously I needed to back it down to get better, and should have backed it off sooner. Between the sinus infection and being stubborn I was definitely showing signs of over training, hopefully I have learned my lesson.

I had a semi promising 21 miler Saturday and a nice 3 mile tempo run yesterday that have me feeling a bit better about my fitness level. Hopefully this Saturday will go well at the Martian Meteor 10k. I would like to run a minute faster than last year to give my confidence about my fitness a bit of a boost before Boston.

Month Training Rundown:

March 2nd through the 8th- 69 miles

Monday- 6 miles AM, 4 miles PM
Tuesday-Indoor Track workout at Kent. Pace not consistent, lots of traffic on the track. 11 miles with 5*1200
Wednesday- Rest
Thursday- 15 miles
Friday-10 miles
Saturday-6 miles with 6*25 seconds strides
Sunday- 17 miles, 13.1 Raced at Youngstown, PR 1:32:31

March 9th through March 15th- 68 miles

Monday- Rest
Tuesday- Track 9 miles with 5*600 2:17, 2:16, 2:18, 2:17, 2:17
Wednesday- AM 12 miles, Lunch 3.5 miles ez
Thursday-7 miles
Friday-6 miles with 6*25 second strides
Saturday- 10 miles, 5 mile race at Malachi, PR 33:13
Sunday-20 miles easy (Really sick, nose running like crazy) 8:37 pace

March 16th through 22nd- 58 miles

Monday-Rest

Tuesday-Stubbornly went to track, runny nose trouble breathing, but workout actually went well, 8 miles total
warm up, 4*100 strides, 3*800, 3*400, 6*100 strides, 1 mile tempo, cool down
800s-2:58, 3:00, 3:04
400s-1:27, 1:26,1:31
mile- 6:57

Wednesday-14 miles, not feeling stellar

Thursday-5 miles trails easy, dead on the hills

Friday-Attempted tempo, felt off, tired, and stomach was queasy
12 miles, 4 at tempo effort, 1 mile easy then 1 more mile at tempo effort (supposed to run 7 miles at tempo), pace was not even close to where I wanted it to be

Saturday-6 miles trails easy, really dead on the hills

Sunday-13 miles 7:54 pace (supposed to run 21), felt pretty zombified and cut the run short to head to the doc and get on antibiotics

March 23rd through the 29th-59 miles

Monday-Rest
Tuesday- 8 mles with Fartlek, 4* 1 minute, 1 minute, 2 minute with half rests, ran with LP, pace felt fine, calfs cramped up pretty badly after second set though so I backed off the effort.
Wednesday-2.5 miles easy, pretty much an extra rest day for the week
Thursday-15 miles after work with GP, starting to feel better, 8:46 pace
Friday-8 miles lunch, still feeling pretty dead on the hills
Saturday-21 miles solo in Chagrin Falls, lots of hills. 8:19 pace, exactly the same pace as when I ran 22 miles on this route last fall. Still feeling dead on the hills but starting to come around

Sunday- Indoor Triathlon, 20 minute swim, 20 minute spin, 20 minute run

Just tried to have a consistent swim (successful) swimming 12 laps every 5 minutes with a small push for an extra lap at the end to get 49 (Oddly this is exactly the same number of laps I swam the first time I did an indoor tri in 2005, and about 1 lap more than what I did in December 2005, the pace was slightly slower than what I did in my last official tri way back in August 2006 (Steelhead HIM), so I guess I can't totally wing it with no training and expect to be where I left off, but I was pretty darn close!)

Tried not to kill myself on the bike (successful) although the "climbs" were definitely felt by my quads

Aimed to treat the run like a tempo, aimed for 25 laps which would have been 5k, came up just short at 24.25, just got a little complacent on the last two miles, very happy with the effort though, the pace felt good and I felt like I could have kept it up for at least another 3 miles. Odd how my only good tempo this build up to Boston came the day after a hilly 21 miler and during an indoor tri following a swim and bike neither of which I have done in forever. I'll still take it though!

Followed up the tri with a short cool down run and some light stretching.

Three weeks to Boston, and while I am not feeling nearly as prepared as I would like to be, I feel much better about this years prep than last years for Boston and I am hoping for a good day there. After tomorrow I should end up with around 285 miles for the month which will be my biggest month ever. Happy about that, just wish I would have felt a little better and gotten in a few better tempo runs.

ProWash

So one of the fun perks of being a blogger, pacer, and running editor for OS&F is on occasion I get to try out cool running products for free! Not a bad gig since I love free stuff, and I especially love free running stuff!

I was approached by ProWash a few months ago and they sent me a free bottle of their detergent. The detergent is designed specifically for technical gear in the hopes to lengthen the life of your technical goods and keep them from smelling after use. Theory being most regular detergents attach on a microscopic level to your clothes and you never really get rid of the smell because the soap clings holding bad smells in, not too mention the clinging soap particles cause your technical gear to stop functioning as it should (i.e. no more wicking sweat away from your skin).

I obviously use tons of technical gear and unfortunately I am a sweater so my stuff stinks! (Just ask my husband!) Well I'm happy to report that I love the mild scent of ProWash and it has done an excellent job keeping my technical gear smelling great. There were only two items ProWash was not able to revive from their smelly state, and one is a sports bra I have had since high school, the other a shirt I wear constantly so no big surprise they have a permanent funk.

Everything else however smells great, and I even tried it out on a few combo loads with technical and regular clothes (don't tell my husband!) and the regular clothes came out smelling great too, whereas normally I risk my workout funk getting on the regular stuff if I wash them together. Since I am an environmental freak we do all of our loads on cold and I hang dry all of my technical gear so I think that is a testament that I do not have to wash my stuff on high heat to get out the smell using ProWash.

I am not sure how the cost compares to regular detergent or where this may be locally available but I am definitely a new fan. Added bonus their packaging is a pouch rather than a bottle so it uses less plastic and is more environmentally friendly! Bottom line I was pleased with the detergent and I give the company props to reaching out via the blog community to test their wares and get the word out.

If you are so inclined you can find out more about the product here: http://www.prowashdetergent.com/

Also you can see a few other blogger reviews here: http://magazinesmiles.blogspot.com/2009/01/wash.html, here: http://frayedlaces.blogspot.com/2008/12/free-swag-product-review-prowash.html, here: http://www.runningandrambling.com/2009/01/prowash-detergent-review.html and here: http://cnaustin.blogspot.com/2009/03/pro-wash.html

St. Malachi Race Report

Yep that's right another race report!

With no local races falling this coming weekend I decided to partake in the St. Malachi 5 mile Race last Saturday. Tons of friends were there and ready to party afterwards. The race is pretty competitive and I was hoping that would drive me to a nice quick time. My goal going in was to run between 32 and 33 (6:20ish to 6:37 pace) based on my recent half and my past 10k races. Thursday night at yoga I noticed that I couldn't breathe out of my right nostril and by Saturday morning my nose was a runny mess. Not sure if I just didn't give my body enough time to recover from the rainy hard effort at Youngstown or if I was bound to catch a cold anyways since it seems like everyone is coming down with something, but I wasn't feeling stellar for this race.

Carpooled with GP over to the race and for once was super early so had plenty of time for a relaxed warm up with GP and Risko. Stripped down last second and forgot to take off my ear warmers. Temps were in the low 40s and I felt good in my Capri's and VR tank. Found two of my VR teammates at the start and lined up with them. Both gals are super quick short course gals and I was hoping I could hold my own and stay close to them. I had been told the first mile was downhill and super fast so my game plan was to have a blazing fast first mile, then try to run pace for the next 3, and hopefully not slow down too much on the final finishing uphill.

Well after the initial downhill the course was not to my liking one bit. Lots of 90 degrees turns in the first mile, an ice patch, a small incline, and a bridge with grated footing. Between that and my stupid heart rate monitor conitnually migrating to my belly I wasn't mentally in the right state to hear 6:04 for the first mile. Yes that is quick, but not nearly as quick as what I had assumed based on others description of the course.

I was running with TM at this point but she quickly surged ahead and I was soon passed by two more gals as we crossed another grated bridge. Now we we running on streets I am familiar with since I run them at lunch all the time so I tried to up the effort on the flats. Around mile 2 Eva passed me and looked good. I tried to go with her but didn't have the steam. I eventually got a grip and started to reel in one of the girls who passed me only to lose everything I had gained on her at a patch of ice (not willing to risk slipping in a tune up race). Heading into mile 3 there is a nice little climb for most of the mile which didn't help my pace any and I slowly fell back from Eva and the gal in blue. I tried to make it up on the downhill but once again lost my groove at the ice patch.

I was basically just in survival mode knowing I needed to push hard through mile 4 because the last mile split would be slow. In the last mile Durno caught me and made some crack about me running marathon pace and I told him I was dying out there. He said something about keeping my eyes on the prize but promptly rolled his ankle, and decided he better keep his eyes on the road and pulled ahead of me.

Thankfully no girls were around me as I trudged up the final hill because I had no steam left in me. Someone shouted that this was where all the hill training paid off and all I could think was this was proving my hill training hasn't helped at all :)

Finished in 33:13 which is a 6:39 pace and about a 2 minute PR for me. I'm happy I did so well despite feeling so bad, but since my current 10k and 5.3 mile (Blossom) PR paces are faster than this I know I can do better. Managed to snag 2nd in my age group and was about 8th gal overall. All the VR gals did great, TM placing 3rd overall and Eva finishing first in our age group. JC also placed in her age group and was on my heels.

Having been on the wagon for 7 weeks I decided to treat myself to a few post race brews which in retrospect was probably a bad idea since I still haven't kicked this sinus infection almost a week after it started.

It was good to get out and get in a hard effort and party after with friends even if the race didn't go quite as well as I would have hoped for.

If they take enough photos apparently I can look good while racing ;)

Youngstown Mill Creek Classic Half Marathon Race Report

What's that, a race?

Same question my legs were pondering as I warmed up Sunday for my first race since the Detroit Turkey Trot and Richmond Marathon in November.

While I had some great races in 08 the focus of my training was for Boston and Richmond and underachieving my goals at those races definitely left a sour taste in my mouth. A month or so of slackerdom and I finally got back at it and have been getting in some consistent mileage to get ready for Boston in hopes of finally achieving some of last years marathon goals. The speed and tempo workouts haven't been pretty so my original goal for Youngstown was to run the race at goal marathon pace to get a feel for it again. This fit with my cookie cutter Pfitzinger training plan, and I figured if anything this would be pretty tough given that Youngstown is a relentless half with rolling hills the entire way up through the final uphill finish.

Well my trusty SERC pals were having none of it. They recommended I race the half. Only 7 weeks to Boston and I need to get a long race in to get my race mojo back. After lots of poo pooing I gave into their logic and agreed it would be good for me to approach the race like a race. The past two marathons despite running great 10ks leading up to the race I have felt that something wasn't quite right, so maybe for me I need to race a slightly longer distance to prep mentally for racing the full marathon. With that in mind the goal was to try and average 7 minute miles for as long as I could. In an ideal flat world I would have targeted 6:50, but Youngstown is not that world :) Even if I ran target marathon pace it would have been a PR day for me. This was only my 10th half marathon ever, 4 of which were here the previous 4 years and which I have always treated like a training day, sand bagging and hammering the last few miles. So needless to say I was ready to clear my 1:36:56 from River Run (downhill!) in 2006 from my list of PRs and get a new reasonable PR for the half. The question was just how much would I be able to shave off?

DST had me off the couch early (slept at the inlaws downstairs as to not wake anyone) and on my way to Solon to carpool with Frank and BB to the race. This is always a nice part of the day chatting with my SERC peeps and wondering what horrible conditions we will have to run in next. Youngstown is not only famous for its hills but it it's notoriously crappy weather outside every year, lack of footing, sight etc is pretty normal. This year for a change it was not snowing, but raining and mid 40s. Others may have been chilly but to be quite honest I race well in these sort of conditions so I wasn't too worried. I'd definitely take the weather we had over the 60s and humid it was the day before, I am just not acclimated to that yet!

Out of the car and off to packet pick up it was a bit chilly. Bathroom stops, outfit assessment then it was off to warm up. I set out with BB to get in 2 easy miles before stripping down. I am so grateful I did a thorough warm up because initially I was pretty chilly but after a mile I realized I would be fine in a tank and shorts. Wasn't feeling to peppy on the hills in the warm up, but just hoped for some race day magic to occur once I hit the line.

Into my racing flats and a pair of cheap gloves and I was ready to toe the line with everyone else. Last year was unusual in that not many super fast chicks showed up. This year things were back to the norm with a few speedsters to keep you honest. I lined up near the front next to CG. I assumed she would be around my pace in this race, but obviously stronger on the hills since strength is not my forte.

Took it out at a good effort knowing that the first two miles would be fast since they are a net downhill. I knew a few of the guys around me would finish close to me and my effort felt good so I went with the flow. The ground was wet and it was rainy but my temperature felt good and I managed to avoid most of the major puddles. (6:29, 7:07)

Around mile 2 CG caught me on the uphill and went by as well as a second young chick. I held my effort knowing that I couldn't waste energy trying to race these gals up hills that I am not strong on. Each stretch of flat or downhill I would slowly close the gap only to lose it all back at the next set of inclines. I was pretty happy to keep the gap where it was and my pace was going well (6:43).

Mile 3 to 4 is where you hit the first significant hill. I definitely could feel it and watched as the group around me pulled away (7:24). My Garmin was a bit off from the markers but my average pace was just under 7 and after climbing "Bear" hill I was able to enjoy a few quick miles where there are only some false flats and a few rollers (7:04, 6:49, 6:51). Mile 6 was marked way short so I was definitely grateful for the Garmin since mile 7 was right on. In the past I have always had company during this stretch and have never realized how secluded it is. It is mostly a false flat winding section and if you lose your focus it would be easy to let the pace slip. Thankfully I was clipping along at my target pace still and was remembering why I love racing.

A small climb before mile 8 then one more friendly mile before the second monster hill during mile 9. Around 8 I saw Frank pull over to the side and got my glimpse of some of the runners who had surged past me on the hills earlier. I couldn't tell what Frank was up to but assumed cramping and felt bad for him, but before I knew it he was zipping away past everyone again and was gone from my sight. I hadn't taken any aid on the course but after seeing Frank pull over I decided to take a bit of Gatorade at the next two stops.

The whole race I was behind CG who was wearing the Nike Lunar Trainers which have neon yellow bottoms. All I saw most of the day was these bright yellow feet grinding their way over the hills. Mile 9 I heard someone coming up on me fast and wondered what the heck was going on. I made a comment about sandbagging and the guy said he had been trying to catch me forever. He had been taking it easy and was ready to start taking names. I ran with him for a little bit until we got to the horrible hill before mile 10 where I watched him float away. (7:17, 6:58, 7:28)

After mile 10 there are two miles of mostly runnable terrain. In past years this is where I have upped the effort and started running people down. This year I was content to up the effort and try to hold onto pace. I finally reeled in two guys who had passed me around mile 4 and thought maybe I could close some of the gap on CG but the last miles rollers and finishing up hill were waiting to do me in. The only mile I don't think I ran as well was mile 12. This is where you start to see other runners behind you as they are heading towards mile 10. Got some encouragement from Berk and a gentleman who I slowly passed, but I mostly just watched the other runners and offered encouragement when I could. I probably got a little complacent here and could have pushed harder to take advantage of the flats (7:08, 6:56).

I thought I would be ready to tackle that last mile and maybe catch KM but it was apparent as I hit the first set of rollers that I was toast. My pace quickly dropped and despite my best efforts I just had to hold on through the (horrible uphill) finish (7:50) for a final time of 1:32:31 (7:04 pace). (4th female, 1st age group) As I walked through the chutes my quads and calves gave a not so quiet protest and I could tell that had I pushed any harder serious cramping would have occurred. Got in a quick 2 mile cool down (that initial downhill was quite painful!) and cheered on my SERC gals to their strong finishes before finally getting a change of clothes. Of course it started pouring after I changed and made my way to the post race party area so I was still a drowned rat and now that I was no longer racing I was cold! Two cups of coffee and post race chatting with friends seemed to help though.

I was super ecstatic to run a PR and get my soft Half marathon PR off the books for sure. I was also very pleased that my fitness level is where I want it to be. This was a great affirmation that my hard work is indeed paying off. Some days things just seem to click right where you expect and want them to be, and I am so glad that Sunday was one of those days. Hopefully with a proper taper and 6 weeks more training Boston will also be one of those days! (Maybe even a day that exceeds rather than just meets expectations! Wouldn't that be a nice bonus?)

Pre Race Carb Loading Paid Off!

Post Race Coffee and Apple!

SERC Chicks Rule!

Kurt edged me out by 6 seconds!

SERC Runners of the year after a great race!

Patriotic and Prideful!

Frank and BB Chatting by the fire

Berk and Daisy

February 2009 Training Rundown

After Richmond last November I decided it was time for a few back off months. Time to regroup and refocus my efforts and try to determine what my running goals would be for 2009 and the future. I did a lot of high mileage weeks last year topping out with a 90 miler, but my consistency wasn't great, my average weekly mileage during Richmond training was around 65 because I would have two huge weeks followed up by a dismal week due to either life or exhaustion. So my focus this month has been on consistency. I want to keep my average mileage the same as it was for Richmond, but peak weeks will be around 70 miles rather than 90 and low weeks will be 45-50 rather than 30-40.

Well that training started the last week of January and other than that first week has gone as planned. The week I started my 12 week program for Boston I was definitely lacking motivation, just feeling sluggish and unsure of my goals. I planned out Pfitzingers low mileage plan which peaks around 50 miles and decided I was going to take it easy and just run Boston for fun. Well about half way through that week I sucked it up and got back on top of my training motivation and wrote out Pfitzingers middle mileage plan which peaks at 70 miles twice, telling myself I would run somewhere in between the two plans every week depending on what life is throwing at me and on how my body is responding to the training.

Since the first training block is mostly endurance and building mileage I have actually been hitting the higher mileage weeks with no issues the past few weeks. I haven't been strictly following the plan on easy days, doing whatever mileage I feel like rather than what is planned, but I have been getting in the key medium long runs, tempos, and long runs. I've backed off my pace on the easy runs and the medium long runs this time around, and I have upped my effort on the long runs. Tempos have been okay, not great due to weather and the fact that I haven't run anything fast since November. The wind has just been nuts in Cleveland this month and too many of my routes end into the wind, but if it is windy in Boston I will not have any excuses! This week starts in on speed workouts, and I have three races before Boston starting with Youngstown half this weekend to figure out what kind of speed I have in me. So far I am feeling confident about my endurance but since I haven't raced since November my speed is a big question mark, and if my tempo runs are any indicator I don't like what I see and likely have some really hard workouts and races coming up the next few weeks to get to where I want to be.

Last year I paced Tampa in early February and did a few recovery weeks so mileage was low. I think that killed me a bit at Boston so I am hoping that having a more consistent February this year will prove useful at Boston. I know the 12 week training plan is minimal, but I think I really needed the mental and physical recharge after Richmond in November. Not to mention that anything more than the 12 week plan has you training in really shitty Cleveland winter weather for over 2 months and I am not sure anyone can take that :)

I have purposely not been tracking workouts on here, trying to keep my motivation to get the miles internal rather than logging them just to beef up my training log. But for those that are wondering I have been training and so SH doesn't think I am logging secret miles here is how the month of February played out.

February 2nd to the 8th-11 weeks to Boston-55 miles
Monday-Off
Tuesday-10 miles with 4 at LT effort. Tempo was slow, 7:23, 7:23, 7:09, 6:54, took almost a week to recover from the effort, legs just felt hammered, was pretty disappointed
10 minutes stretching and some quick abs
Wednesday-6 miles easy with Daisy 9minute pace
Thursday-5.5 miles easy with Daisy and BM 9:30s
Friday-11.6 miles with GP 9 minute pace
Saturday-4.5 miles easy 9 minute pace
Sunday-17 miles with Daisy and Solar, felt strong 8:20 pace. 60 minutes yoga

February 9th to the 15th-10 weeks to Boston-64 miles
Monday-Off
Tuesday-9 miles with 10*25 second strides 8:20 pace
Wednesday-6.5 miles easy with a couple short hill sprints at the end 8:50 pace
30 minutes strength-3*10 push up/side planks, 3*20 abs, side leg lifts, lunges, single leg squats, plank 90 seconds
Thursday-4.65 mile run easy 8:50 pace
Friday-AM 12.6 miles with GP, 9:10s, Lunch 6.6 miles with Daisy Easy, 8:40s
Saturday-4.3 miles easy 9:20s
Sunday-20 miles with Frank, PR, and SG, 7:25 pace

February 16th to 22nd-9 weeks to Boston-64 miles
Monday-20 minutes strength 3*10 push up planks, 60 sec plank, 2*30 second planks, 2*20 abs
Tuesday-8 miles easy with Salty 8:45 pace
Wednesday-8 miles easy with Salty 9 minute pace
Thursday-AM: 9.5 mile. second LT attempt. Did not go well. Too windy outside (45 mph gusts) so did a 4 mile warm up outside with Daisy then took to the treadmills. 3 miles at 6:53 pace, took a small breather for water and heart rate skyrocketed when I ratcheted it back up. So did one mile at 7:00 pace and called it quits.
Lunch: 4.5 miles easy with Daisy, Salty, and JC, 9:45 pace
PM: 60 minutes yoga
Friday-11.6 miles with GP, 9:40 pace
Saturday-5.25 miles easy, 9:30 pace
Sunday-17.25 miles with MN, DP, and Frank, 7:50 pace

February 23rd to March 1st-8 weeks to Boston-75 miles
Monday-Off
Tuesday-8 miles easy with Salty and Daisy, 10*30 second strides. 8:20s
Wednesday-AM 12.5 miles with 6 miles at LT effort. Windy day on marginal, ran from home to work: 7:03, 6:57, 6:48,7:08,7:01,7:05, struggled with the wind and stupid contact rolling up in my eye
Lunch: 4.35 miles easy with Daisy, Salty and JC 9:40s
Thursday-7 miles easy with Daisy and Salty, 9 minute pace
PM 60 minutes Yoga
Friday-15.4 miles with GP, 9:10s
Saturday-7 miles easy with 6*30 second strides, 8:50s
Sunday-20 miles with Frank, PR, and KM, 7:34 pace