NAPERVILLE WOMEN'S HALF MARATHON RACE RECAP 4/22/18
I was oddly calm going into this weekend. Work had been action packed all week and I knew that 13.1 was going to be a tough battle to complete. But I guess because I didn't have huge expectations for how it was going to turn out (I was already considering at what point a DNF would be fine...yeah, I can overreact sometimes) I just didn't get as anxiety laden as I have for races where I wanted a specific outcome really badly. Either that, or I'm finally starting to not be as worried filled due to experience.
I laid out capris and really short sleeves with a tank and all my gear the night before. I contemplated shorts but decided I wouldn't be moving fast enough to generate that much heat. I did take a hoodie with me (cheap old cotton one as I didn't want to have to sacrifice any of my cool tech long sleeves to the donation bins) but I didn't bring any gloves or warm accessories beyond that. Decided to fill and carry my 9oz Nathan handheld water bottle and pack it with 3 gels. Stuffed a backup set of wired headphones in my armband along with my car key, ID, money, etc. I really wasn't going overboard with the gear. Weather was 40 degrees and no sun, with chance to get to 55 with partial sun by race end if it took my between 2:30 and 3 hours. Possibly 59 if took me longer but I was secretly rooting for myself to finish under that time.
It was an early wakeup so I told roxyhubby to not come with me since him and kiddo may have nothing to do for all those hours and I didn't know how the weather would turn out. He said, what if we came and met you. I told him that would be ok but to really check all the road closures and parking on the website because I didn't want them to go all that way and get stuck. He also promised me coffee and possibly donuts back at home when I finished. So I made the easy 45 min drive which was exactly 26.2 miles from my house (WEIRD RIGHT???) and got the very last parking space in the second parking lot of 5 listed on their website. Race was starting at North Central college and it seemed a little like a ghost town considering all the full parking spots.
Even when I got to the track where the starting line and finish line were set up it was still very much like all the people were gone. Did I not time this right...No, I saw plenty of people milling about by their cars...am I way too early???? See below how they had the finisher chute for the HM (purple) next to the 5k (pink) and the start line was farther down behind it in white. Where those yellow and blue fences are off to the right on the field were the corral lineups. But barely any people. So I decided to go look for the porta potties.
Oh wait....here are all the people!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Everyone was waiting in the stadium where they had space heaters and where it was warm.
I went back outside to go for my last potty break (no lines huzzah) although there was a giant line when I exited so perhaps I'm a trend setter. And then decided to mill about the field instead of being claustrophobic in the stadium. I'm not kidding when I say that this picture below was taking 10 min before the 7am start time. A tad different than disney races. The corrals were self seeded and there were only three. 8min or faster. 9 min. and 10 min. And then everyone else. I just stuck myself somewhere at the very back of the 10min. The 2:20 pace group seemed quite giant and so I sort of let them go ahead of me and the announcer said "wave 1 will end here" right as I was approaching the track. I didn't realize there were two waves and I quickly decided I'd rather be tailing behind a logjam of people to keep my pace in check, then at the literal start line for the second wave and going out too fast. If that makes sense. So I was amongst the last line of people to cross the start at wave 1. I still have no idea how long they waited to release the next wave...it wasn't until mile 2 or 3 that I had a handful of very fast seeming people passing me...maybe catching up???
So I don't have a lot of pics from the race afterall. I had my phone in my capri pockets (OMG I LOVE CAPRI POCKETS!) and wireless headphones in (rocking out to a mix of Kesha, Gwen, Christina, Britney, etc.)
Mile 1: 10:44
I definitely made a concerted effort not to go out too crazy. The volume of people certainly helped and the tighter area around the track and then through part of campus helped as well. I kind of had a mental target of being between 10:25 and 10:50 as a "good place" for this race. Once we got out into the neighborhood it really opened up and there was lots of room. 2:20 pace group was about a blockish away and would be that way for some time. I still had my teal cotton hoodie on because it was still a tad chilly.
Mile 2: 10:28
hitting my stride and feeling pretty good. The majority of the race was winding through residential streets and so I spent quite a bit of time house hunting. There was at least one family on just about every street (some out in their pajamas, some in lawn chairs, some with signs.) So I took every opportunity I could for a high five or a smile. Whatever would give me a power boost.
Pretty sure the 5k split off here...it would not start for another 45 minutes but the signs were out. No turning back once I passed it.
Mile 3: 9:58 and my fastest mile this race. Just hitting my stride. I definitely took off my hoodie somewhere during this mile or mile 4 (cant' remember). The dongles were annoying me and I wasn't exactly getting hot but I just didn't feel like wearing it anymore. I realized as I was taking it off that my arm band was over it and came off and was gone (DOH)...amazingly I turn my head and a woman in orange has it in her hands and gasps OMG I CAUGHT IT. I emphatically said THANK YOU!!! So I'm juggling my water bottle my armband and my now half off hoodie. And trying to stay running...probably why I sped up. I held my hoodie in one hand for about another mile waiting for the next aid station to set it down.
Mile 4: 10:29 I was noticing lots of long sleeves and hoodies wrapped around wastes and discarded on cones but I had it my head to set it down at the aid station. I ran past a woman in a lawn chair with a sign reading "Do Epic Sh*t" and there were like 3 coats laying next to her and I gestured like "can I put my hoodie there" She smiled so I did. I'd see her later when we came back near that street again. I saw my husbands old tri coach with the triathlon team name and called out "Hi Coach Joe" and I could tell he was trying to figure out who I was. I'd see him three more times and he gave me encouragement each time. Never did get to tell him who I was.
Mile 5: 10:19 I was still feeling pretty good but I'd done lots of training in the 3-6 mile range so that shouldn't have too surprising. I knew I wanted to do a gel at about 45 minutes but was sort of waiting for a good time. I drank the rest of my water bottle and got a refill on the go (thanks volunteer dude for offering the liter water bottle while we slow jogged) and I downed a vanilla clif shot gel packet. And drank more water. Hills started around here or maybe I just started noticing them more. THe elevation chart showed there'd be some uphill right in the middle of the race before some up and down toward the end (with a net loss by just a smidge overall)
Mile 6: 10:34 Still feeling alright overall. Definitely didn't feel like i was pushing, much more like a true long run with maybe some extra mustard now and then. I had at this point been going a little back and forth with a few groups of women. I'd see them again after leaving them or I'd come up on them after losing them. The roads were still fairly wide open so lots of space but familiar people at this point. Could still see the 2:20 pace group. It grew and shrunk and grew over the first half of the race. I had a teeny inkling maybe I'd stay with them for a while, but I was still so unsure about my ability to sustain this through the long haul. My 6.2 was at a 1:03 which is well past my 10k fall pace but not terribly far off from other 10k's I'd done prior to that. So I was content.
Mile 7: 10:46 Nothing of huge note sticks out in my head about mile 7. I do remember running near where we had BBQ the day before!
Mile 8: 11:28 The peak of elevation. And three walk breaks. I felt some lactic burn in the calves during an especially extended uphill and I took a fast walk as a breather. There was at least one other of the same situation. And right as I was about to mile 9 I took half of my cherry chocolate caffeine clif shot and drank a bunch of water and texted my hubby that I was at mile 9. He responded Wow Good Job!! Just 4 to go. But I didn't see that response until later. I did not know that he texted me back from the parking garage at the college.
Mile 9: 10:49 A bit of a bounce back. Just ran that mile straight. I knew getting to 10 would be the biggest proof that I could finish this thing. Because then it was just a 5k and I could survive a 5k. The course had a lot of turns in it and right about now I was extra greatful for them because my mind would stick on "just get to the next turn" on repeat. The next turn can be good motivation.
Mile 10: 11:44 Ok so mile 10 wasn't the fastest. At this point I was kind of feeling the effects tiredness in my legs. Breathing wise I was fine. The weather was good and my body wasn't over heated or too cold. But the fatigue was obviously starting to set in. A volunteer group was passing out smarties and I took one and put it in my pocket. I wasn't watch watching very much at all this race. I'd more feel the buzz at the mile markers and go "heh, ok" or check on my time as I approached the minutes where I wanted to take my gels. But overall I was just sort of not caring. But as we approached mile 11 I started doing the dreaded Race Math!
Mile 11: 11:06
Hey I remember I took a picture during mile 11. Right about where the mile 11 sign should have been was when we turned off residential street and onto a path through a wooded area. When stepping up onto the curb that took us from street to path I kinda felt my calves get sort of tight. I was perturbed that the mile sign wasn't there and I took a little walk break. Saw hubby's text plus one that said "feeling ok?" And I wrote "11 legs tight just trying my best" He wrote You can Do It, I know it! and sent a pic but I wouldn't see either until I crossed the finish line. So then I saw mile marker 11.1
Aha, so they were letting us know we had 3 miles left, not 3.1
I kind of liked that. So now I was doing the "if I run 3 miles in 30 minutes then I will finish in X...but I'll probably do 11 min and finish in X, but if I have one at 11 and another at 12..." etc. So I had the will to go get my PR, just would by body play along nicely?
The paved path had lots of chalk sayings on it for us as we ran. Motivational things. I appreciated those. And I can't remember most of them now!
Then there was an 11.2 marker, and 11.3, and 11.4...ugh why? I didn't like that. I prefer more miles to just go by without me noticing. Once we were free of the wooded area that stopped. My calves were really starting to remind me they existed and so I just eased up a bit more even though I was started to get rapidly passed by pacmans. I was a ghost for sure. But I was a determined ghost!
Mile 12: 12:37
Mile 13 11:54
Last .24 miles 10:47 pace
I had more leg issues this mile. Everything in my head was saying "One more mile" "you have this" "this is nothing" "omg you are going to PR" and my legs were just tight and tired and kind of ouchy. I was starting to feel it in my hips too. And I didn't want a tight calf muscle to go snap. So I just kept myself steady and yes, walked up another few hills. Once I saw the college and the track approaching I tried to just hold steady and not give up. I went from in the span of 4 miles thinking I could get less than 2:20 to a 2:20 to maybe a few min more to definitely at least a PR to "oh no, I don't want to blow a PR" and so I ran from 13 all the way in with all the heart I could muster.
I chomped 4 people on the the track and so at least I finished a pacman.
Heard screaming that sounded just like my hubby and kiddo, saw the clock and knew it was a PR day, huge smile and the tears started welling. My baby was there and she had dunkin donuts for me
!!!!
2:25:38 final
Didn't realize but hubby sent me this pic at mile 11.1 and I had not seen it until after I finished.
The adrenaline of seeing my family and completing this half marathon and doing it with my best time despite not intending to do that and despite me backing off. Well it made me quite happy.
Until I my legs reminded me they existed and then we took a little rest in the end zone with donuts. More pics coming.
Woohoo!!! Way to go girl!!!
