Rather long 3M report
I promised some 3M details and figured I had better follow through before time gets away from me yet again. It is almost silly to write about it 2 weeks later, but write about it I shall.
I went in with a plan and finish time goal. I printed a pace band out since my David wasn't going to able to run with me. I chose a pace that I thought was doable - a 10:30 pace. I know, I know. That is super slow, but I've never paced in a race ever, and face it, I'm slow!
I arrived super early and wandered around looking for some Gazelles. There was no line at the toilets, so I took advantage of a probably as-of-yet-unused toilet. I saw Staley and a few others. Gilbert made me put my long pants on to stay warm. I found Leslie and then eventually Elizabeth and David A. They had seen Gayatri and Barb warming up. I did also find Erin, who was beaming about warming up for the first time ever in a race.
I was so happy to finally find Gayatri and Barb as it was approaching 6:45am by then. They were done warming up, so I did a little jogging about. Sundeep took some photos of us, and we waited until the last minute to hand off our jackets to him. The sunrise was lovely. The horn blew. We were off.
I knew to take it slow the first mile. I hadn't run the first 5 miles in any training runs, so I was not sure what was ahead. I just planned to stay on my 10:30 pace and look for Sarah at the corner of Mesa and Spicewood Springs. I ran with Gayatri and Barb for perhaps 1/4 mile before I started speeding up. Mile 1 marker came and my time was 10:19. Remember that time as it's quite serendipitous. I was happy to see that...not too fast and not too slow. I felt great and happy.
Mile 2 had a water stop...actually before. So many folks around me were stopping. No way was I stopping that early for water. Mile 2 was 10:31. I remember telling myself to slow it down and not get going too fast. There was also a lot of passing and being passed as people found their pace.
Fairly early in the race I told myself, "Stay on target. Stay on target." We have a lot of Star Wars in this house, so I heard Red Leader's voice to Luke in my head. I just needed to focus and stay on my pace plan. At this point I was really looking forward to seeing Sarah. Not having David or the boys there was a sadness, so I really wanted to see Sarah's face cheering for me.
A friend and former Gazelle ran by me around mile 3 - Tina. She is such a great runner. She was picking her pace up as she passed me. She had realized she'd been dawdling and needed to get a move on if she was going to reach her goal (I believe her finish time was around 1:45). Mile 3 time was 10:01. I had sped up, but I felt fine.
I passed the 2nd water stop as well. I didn't want to lose time and didn't want a goo this early. I saw Elizabeth and David walking the wrong way. I called out and Elizabeth said she wasn't doing well. She'd been sick with a stomach bug the week before. Shock and disappointment for her hung with me for a few minutes. She was hoping to do a 2 hour race, and I really think she would have done it if she hadn't been sick.
I saw Sarah before she saw me. I could see concern on her face as she focused on people running by trying to find familiar faces. I called out to her and waved both arms. She smiled and cheered. My emotion at seeing her caught me by surprise. A lump formed in my throat as I rounded the corner onto Spicewood Springs. I didn't realize how much I was looking forward to seeing someone I loved and who loved me. It's nice to have anyone cheer for me, but now I know it's crucial to have someone dear to me there to cheer me on.
Mile 4 time 10:00. I still felt fine. Of course, it's all downhill, which I knew but didn't really know because I hadn't run this part of the course before. Mile 5 time was 9:27. I said to myself, "What the f--- are you doing?" I felt fine. I didn't think I was running that fast. Later I learned from Gilbert that I should not have run that particular mile that fast. I should have known that mile was there and to take it easy. However, I never ran that part of the course b/c Gazelle half-marathoners started at mile 5 of the race during our training run.
I stopped at the water stop between 5 and 6. I had taken my goo at the mile 5 marker. I walked while I drank some water, then I was off. I continued my mantra: Stay on target. Stay on target. I was thrilled to be feeling so good and being doing it. I was doing it!
Mile 6 time was 10:41, which includes water stop. Mile 7 was 10:27. I dreaded the bit on Burnet Road. Burnet Road is horribly dull and long. After seeing Sarah, my next goal was to get through the relay exchange area and half-way point. After that, I wanted to get past Burnet and to the coffee shop at Guadalupe and North Loop where Sundeep was waiting. I was pleasantly suprised to hear someone say, "Go, Jessica!" on Burnet Road. I looked over to see an old school friend, Julie, and her fiance (perhaps hubby by now). What a sweet boost! Julie is also a former Gazelle, and I have known her since since elementary school.
I really pushed it to mile 8. That is the only mile marker I thought took too long to arrive. It was the only time I thought, "Where is that &%@ mile marker?!" I planned to take another goo there and get water. Mile 8 time was 9:53. I took goo and water and headed off to mile 9 and the joys of leaving Burnet Road behind.
North Loop was okay. I did a lot of "Stay on Target" chatting here. Staley ran by telling me how great I looked and how good I was doing. At the time, I had no idea why he was passing me. Of course at home after the race I read the Gazelle forum and found out he had passed out at the start. Staley is amazing. He looked great and passing me was effortless for him. I told him, "It's getting harder," to which he replied, "We've been here before." Good words at a good time. Another unexpected boost to pull me along. Mile 9 - 10:31. Fairly good since there are some up hill spots on North Loop.
Sundeep also didn't see me until I called to him. He seemed surprised to see me. I approached the 10 mile marker and was furious to see the water stop 10 or 20 feet in front of the marker. Good grief. Can't they put the stops either at the marker or right after the marker? Mile 10 time 10:40, which includes a water stop.
When I got on Duval, I knew I had it in the bag as long as I stayed on a 10:30 pace. In hindsight, I wonder if I should have pushed more here since it's downhill. At the time, my conservative nature kicked in, and I planned to run 10:30 until the last mile when I would push it. Another friend found me during this time, Karen. I had cheered for her at mile 14 of the ARA 30K. She came up behind me and stayed with me for a while, chatting. I kept telling her I couldn't chat and had to focus, but it's hard not to keep up a bit of conversation when someone is talking. It was another nice boost, but I was glad to send her along ahead and sink back into my brain and my Stay On Target Mantra.
Mile 11 - 10:33
Mile 12 - 10:26
I was starting to feel dizzy and debated taking water at mile 12. I had taken half a goo around 11.5, more out of something to do rather than really needing fuel. I stopped at mile 12 water stop thinking I would sip some water and then really get going and try to run a 9:30 last mile. This is also the first time I looked at my pace band. For mile 12, I should be at 2:05 to reach my goal of 2:17. The clock on top of the mile marker said 2:05. Yikes! I better get in gear. That timing goof was the first sign of not being quite right.
I was dizzy the entire last mile. Running through campus was torture. I don't know why I was dizzy. Later, Gilbert tried to say I didn't have enough long runs (hah!). Bernard scolded me for waiting too long to start my goos. "You can't get that nutrition back," he wisely told me the day after the race. I wondered if my vertigo was a factor. Needless to say, I didn't run a 9:30 last mile. That last mile I just tried to forget being dizzy and forget that the clock was ticking away on my goal.
Last year, my David told me he hated running on Trinity. I know why now. You can see the finish line the whole way, but it's so far away. Too soon for a sprint but too far to keep shuffling along. It was like a house of mirrors as I ran forward, but the finish line never got closer. I had a brief moment of wondering if David and my boys would be there. David had said they might be if he woke up without a fever. I had to shake that thought away so I wouldn't set myself up for heartbreak if/when I didn't see them.
The finish got closer. The crowds grew thicker. People were cheering, but I couldn't hear them. I tried to scan them for a familiar face - any familiar face, but I couldn't spare the energy. Some man was trying to out-sprint me, so I picked it up. I could see the finish line clock and watched it tick through 2 hours 16 minute and then into 2 hours 17 minutes. I was missing my goal! I told myself to sprint and just get there before it turned to 18 minutes.
Mile 13 - 10:36 (includes that last water stop)
Last .1 - 57 seconds
I got my chip cut off, took a bottle of water, and dizzily walked to get my medal. "Medal me," I said to best looking girl standing there. I went on down the chute to the food and saw Kenny Hill standing there. I must have looked rather disoriented, because he asked, "Who are you looking for?" I babbled something, and then I wisely stood there talking to him. It was only then that I realized that I had beaten my goal time by 2 minutes. I had been fooled by those mile marker clocks. It's funny how your brain works in the last miles of a race. I knew the entire race that those clocks were gun time and to ignore them. But at mile 12 and 13 and 13.1, I forgot all that and panicked that I was somehow not going to do it. My brain didn't even try to be logical; in it's warped state, it just trusted those wretched clocks.
Final chip time: 2 hours 15 minutes.
If I hadn't stopped at that mile 12 water stop, I could've been 2:14 something. Foiled!
I was and still am so proud of myself. I paced myself, all by myself. It gives me much confidence to try it again in a future race.
I am also quite proud of My Girls. I hope they don't mind that I post their times:
EEL, aka The Fast Girls
Elizabeth - dropped out due to illness, which was wise and rather brave on her part.
Erin - 2:01.30 - just missed her goal of sub-2 but how super fast is she!
Leslie - 2:07 - so dang fast!
My 5k/10k Girls:
Barb - 2:19 - Ms. I-just-want-to-do-under-2:30
Gayatri - 2:21 - Another Ms.-under-2:30
For all you fast folk out there, congrats on your super fast race(s). But just know that we may be slow, but we work just as hard as you. And even if some people think that running only qualifies if you are under a 9 minute pace, I'm pretty sure We are Runners.
Oh right, remember that 10:19 first mile? Well, my overall pace was 10:19.
So, my David was indeed too sick to come to the finish. It's the first race ever that he wasn't there to cheer me on. It was weird for me. I have no photos of me in this race except the crappy Sport Photo pictures. Here's one of my finishing:
I went in with a plan and finish time goal. I printed a pace band out since my David wasn't going to able to run with me. I chose a pace that I thought was doable - a 10:30 pace. I know, I know. That is super slow, but I've never paced in a race ever, and face it, I'm slow!
I arrived super early and wandered around looking for some Gazelles. There was no line at the toilets, so I took advantage of a probably as-of-yet-unused toilet. I saw Staley and a few others. Gilbert made me put my long pants on to stay warm. I found Leslie and then eventually Elizabeth and David A. They had seen Gayatri and Barb warming up. I did also find Erin, who was beaming about warming up for the first time ever in a race.
I was so happy to finally find Gayatri and Barb as it was approaching 6:45am by then. They were done warming up, so I did a little jogging about. Sundeep took some photos of us, and we waited until the last minute to hand off our jackets to him. The sunrise was lovely. The horn blew. We were off.
I knew to take it slow the first mile. I hadn't run the first 5 miles in any training runs, so I was not sure what was ahead. I just planned to stay on my 10:30 pace and look for Sarah at the corner of Mesa and Spicewood Springs. I ran with Gayatri and Barb for perhaps 1/4 mile before I started speeding up. Mile 1 marker came and my time was 10:19. Remember that time as it's quite serendipitous. I was happy to see that...not too fast and not too slow. I felt great and happy.
Mile 2 had a water stop...actually before. So many folks around me were stopping. No way was I stopping that early for water. Mile 2 was 10:31. I remember telling myself to slow it down and not get going too fast. There was also a lot of passing and being passed as people found their pace.
Fairly early in the race I told myself, "Stay on target. Stay on target." We have a lot of Star Wars in this house, so I heard Red Leader's voice to Luke in my head. I just needed to focus and stay on my pace plan. At this point I was really looking forward to seeing Sarah. Not having David or the boys there was a sadness, so I really wanted to see Sarah's face cheering for me.
A friend and former Gazelle ran by me around mile 3 - Tina. She is such a great runner. She was picking her pace up as she passed me. She had realized she'd been dawdling and needed to get a move on if she was going to reach her goal (I believe her finish time was around 1:45). Mile 3 time was 10:01. I had sped up, but I felt fine.
I passed the 2nd water stop as well. I didn't want to lose time and didn't want a goo this early. I saw Elizabeth and David walking the wrong way. I called out and Elizabeth said she wasn't doing well. She'd been sick with a stomach bug the week before. Shock and disappointment for her hung with me for a few minutes. She was hoping to do a 2 hour race, and I really think she would have done it if she hadn't been sick.
I saw Sarah before she saw me. I could see concern on her face as she focused on people running by trying to find familiar faces. I called out to her and waved both arms. She smiled and cheered. My emotion at seeing her caught me by surprise. A lump formed in my throat as I rounded the corner onto Spicewood Springs. I didn't realize how much I was looking forward to seeing someone I loved and who loved me. It's nice to have anyone cheer for me, but now I know it's crucial to have someone dear to me there to cheer me on.
Mile 4 time 10:00. I still felt fine. Of course, it's all downhill, which I knew but didn't really know because I hadn't run this part of the course before. Mile 5 time was 9:27. I said to myself, "What the f--- are you doing?" I felt fine. I didn't think I was running that fast. Later I learned from Gilbert that I should not have run that particular mile that fast. I should have known that mile was there and to take it easy. However, I never ran that part of the course b/c Gazelle half-marathoners started at mile 5 of the race during our training run.
I stopped at the water stop between 5 and 6. I had taken my goo at the mile 5 marker. I walked while I drank some water, then I was off. I continued my mantra: Stay on target. Stay on target. I was thrilled to be feeling so good and being doing it. I was doing it!
Mile 6 time was 10:41, which includes water stop. Mile 7 was 10:27. I dreaded the bit on Burnet Road. Burnet Road is horribly dull and long. After seeing Sarah, my next goal was to get through the relay exchange area and half-way point. After that, I wanted to get past Burnet and to the coffee shop at Guadalupe and North Loop where Sundeep was waiting. I was pleasantly suprised to hear someone say, "Go, Jessica!" on Burnet Road. I looked over to see an old school friend, Julie, and her fiance (perhaps hubby by now). What a sweet boost! Julie is also a former Gazelle, and I have known her since since elementary school.
I really pushed it to mile 8. That is the only mile marker I thought took too long to arrive. It was the only time I thought, "Where is that &%@ mile marker?!" I planned to take another goo there and get water. Mile 8 time was 9:53. I took goo and water and headed off to mile 9 and the joys of leaving Burnet Road behind.
North Loop was okay. I did a lot of "Stay on Target" chatting here. Staley ran by telling me how great I looked and how good I was doing. At the time, I had no idea why he was passing me. Of course at home after the race I read the Gazelle forum and found out he had passed out at the start. Staley is amazing. He looked great and passing me was effortless for him. I told him, "It's getting harder," to which he replied, "We've been here before." Good words at a good time. Another unexpected boost to pull me along. Mile 9 - 10:31. Fairly good since there are some up hill spots on North Loop.
Sundeep also didn't see me until I called to him. He seemed surprised to see me. I approached the 10 mile marker and was furious to see the water stop 10 or 20 feet in front of the marker. Good grief. Can't they put the stops either at the marker or right after the marker? Mile 10 time 10:40, which includes a water stop.
When I got on Duval, I knew I had it in the bag as long as I stayed on a 10:30 pace. In hindsight, I wonder if I should have pushed more here since it's downhill. At the time, my conservative nature kicked in, and I planned to run 10:30 until the last mile when I would push it. Another friend found me during this time, Karen. I had cheered for her at mile 14 of the ARA 30K. She came up behind me and stayed with me for a while, chatting. I kept telling her I couldn't chat and had to focus, but it's hard not to keep up a bit of conversation when someone is talking. It was another nice boost, but I was glad to send her along ahead and sink back into my brain and my Stay On Target Mantra.
Mile 11 - 10:33
Mile 12 - 10:26
I was starting to feel dizzy and debated taking water at mile 12. I had taken half a goo around 11.5, more out of something to do rather than really needing fuel. I stopped at mile 12 water stop thinking I would sip some water and then really get going and try to run a 9:30 last mile. This is also the first time I looked at my pace band. For mile 12, I should be at 2:05 to reach my goal of 2:17. The clock on top of the mile marker said 2:05. Yikes! I better get in gear. That timing goof was the first sign of not being quite right.
I was dizzy the entire last mile. Running through campus was torture. I don't know why I was dizzy. Later, Gilbert tried to say I didn't have enough long runs (hah!). Bernard scolded me for waiting too long to start my goos. "You can't get that nutrition back," he wisely told me the day after the race. I wondered if my vertigo was a factor. Needless to say, I didn't run a 9:30 last mile. That last mile I just tried to forget being dizzy and forget that the clock was ticking away on my goal.
Last year, my David told me he hated running on Trinity. I know why now. You can see the finish line the whole way, but it's so far away. Too soon for a sprint but too far to keep shuffling along. It was like a house of mirrors as I ran forward, but the finish line never got closer. I had a brief moment of wondering if David and my boys would be there. David had said they might be if he woke up without a fever. I had to shake that thought away so I wouldn't set myself up for heartbreak if/when I didn't see them.
The finish got closer. The crowds grew thicker. People were cheering, but I couldn't hear them. I tried to scan them for a familiar face - any familiar face, but I couldn't spare the energy. Some man was trying to out-sprint me, so I picked it up. I could see the finish line clock and watched it tick through 2 hours 16 minute and then into 2 hours 17 minutes. I was missing my goal! I told myself to sprint and just get there before it turned to 18 minutes.
Mile 13 - 10:36 (includes that last water stop)
Last .1 - 57 seconds
I got my chip cut off, took a bottle of water, and dizzily walked to get my medal. "Medal me," I said to best looking girl standing there. I went on down the chute to the food and saw Kenny Hill standing there. I must have looked rather disoriented, because he asked, "Who are you looking for?" I babbled something, and then I wisely stood there talking to him. It was only then that I realized that I had beaten my goal time by 2 minutes. I had been fooled by those mile marker clocks. It's funny how your brain works in the last miles of a race. I knew the entire race that those clocks were gun time and to ignore them. But at mile 12 and 13 and 13.1, I forgot all that and panicked that I was somehow not going to do it. My brain didn't even try to be logical; in it's warped state, it just trusted those wretched clocks.
Final chip time: 2 hours 15 minutes.
If I hadn't stopped at that mile 12 water stop, I could've been 2:14 something. Foiled!
I was and still am so proud of myself. I paced myself, all by myself. It gives me much confidence to try it again in a future race.
I am also quite proud of My Girls. I hope they don't mind that I post their times:
EEL, aka The Fast Girls
Elizabeth - dropped out due to illness, which was wise and rather brave on her part.
Erin - 2:01.30 - just missed her goal of sub-2 but how super fast is she!
Leslie - 2:07 - so dang fast!
My 5k/10k Girls:
Barb - 2:19 - Ms. I-just-want-to-do-under-2:30
Gayatri - 2:21 - Another Ms.-under-2:30
For all you fast folk out there, congrats on your super fast race(s). But just know that we may be slow, but we work just as hard as you. And even if some people think that running only qualifies if you are under a 9 minute pace, I'm pretty sure We are Runners.
Oh right, remember that 10:19 first mile? Well, my overall pace was 10:19.
So, my David was indeed too sick to come to the finish. It's the first race ever that he wasn't there to cheer me on. It was weird for me. I have no photos of me in this race except the crappy Sport Photo pictures. Here's one of my finishing:
Labels: Running
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