I
can’t think of a better way to start this recap than screaming at the
top of my lungs…
I PR’ed!!!
I had
no idea what to expect going into the Bayshore Half Marathon. Since my full marathon in early May, I had been pretty relaxed on my training. And I put some weight back on
(gasp!). However, the one prize jewel I had was that my run-joy was back. I was in the zone and truly enjoying my runs
again. In fact, I had a 13-day run
streak in my legs heading to the starting line. (Yup, no rest day!) My run was good. Life was good.
And I wanted nothing to mess with that.
As
we made the 8 hour trip north to Traverse City, Michigan, my typical pre-race excitement was missing. For
the first time ever, I was just ho-hum about the race. I had no outfit planned. Instead I just
shoved a pile of run clothes in my bag.
I had no race plan… and no goal.
I decided to just wing it and have fun. I learned quickly on Friday that the course scenery alone
was a great reason to run this one.
The views were spectacular off Old Mission Peninsula and the race route
followed the shoreline for nearly 12 miles. I love to run along water, but I still wasn’t in “race
mode”.
Of
course that all changed the minute I stepped into the pack at the starting
line. My adrenaline started pumping
and my head became quite clear. It
was perfect race weather – clear sunny skies with temps in the mid-50’s. The
wind from previously days had miraculously died overnight. The course was advertised as flat and
fast. I was well rested and felt
good. There really was no reason NOT to go for it.
The
half marathon was a point-to-point race, starting at the end of the peninsula
and finishing in Traverse City by Northwestern Michigan College. (The full was
an out & back, same route, starting a half hour earlier). The start was
quick and quiet. There were few
spectators besides volunteers at the start since the roads were closed. With only 2200 in the half marathon field,
runners spread out quickly over the two lane road. Congestion was never an issue, which is what draws me to
these smaller races. I forgot to put my sunglasses on until mile 2 and my left contact got foggy on me (and stayed that way through the race). The first couple miles felt comfortable, but it
always takes me a good 3 miles to get all systems going.
Mile
1 – 8:43
Mile
2 – 8:58
Mile
3 – 8:51
Once
I was warmed up, I tried to focus on my form, running efficient and preserving
energy for the second half. People
were passing me like crazy, but I held to my steady pace, knowing that I
would probably pass many of them later in the race (and I did). By time I reached mile 6, I was in a
PR-state-of-mind (to beat a 1:58:16, which I had managed to run exactly twice
in the past couple months). There
was a huge swelling of fans around the halfway point (including my kids and
hubby). It gave me a burst of "feel-good" energy (or maybe it was the GU?), and I popped out an 8:45
mile.
Mile
4 – 8:53
Mile
5 – 8:56
Mile
6 – 9:05 *GU and water
Mile
7 – 8:45
I
tend to converse with myself a lot in the back half of distance races. For the next several miles, I tried to
concentrate on every movement (which means I wasn’t gazing around at the
beautiful scenery very much). I
focused on working myself just outside my comfort zone. I wanted no regrets or self
doubt at the finish. This was my last half-marathon until
September and I wanted to end the spring race season well. Run smart, consistent and strong.
Mile
8 – 8:54
Mile
9 – 8:59
Mile
10 – 9:05 *GU and water… and heavenly ORANGES!
I
cannot even express how hard I worked to keep a sub-9 pace in the last three miles.
For the first time of the race, I turned on music to provide some bonus energy for
the final 5k. In fact, I tried to mind-play with myself that I had just started
a 5k rather than closing on a half.
I took each mile at a time.
Mile 11 is always my hardest and worst mile split. I challenged myself to make it strong.
The harder I push, the faster I get to 12. And when mile 12 appeared, I thanked my lucky stars gave myself permission to use it up… to have nothing
left at the end. I saw my hubby
and kiddos at the final corner as we turned into the campus of Northwestern Michigan
College.
 |
| I love this picture because of Little Girl's face cheering me on. |
 |
| Mile 12.5 |
 |
| Now that's a PR pose! |
There were a couple
rolling hills on the final stretch that cut into my quads, but I pushed up and
onward with everything I had left.
As I came down the final stretch, I drew off the energy of the
crowds. The top marathoners were
still making their way into the finish so every once in awhile there were huge bursts of cheering (as the marathoners soared past me). We curved into the high school stadium,
and as soon as I hit that track, my legs took off for the finish line
arch. When I glanced at my
stopwatch thru blurry contacts, I was ecstatic to see a 1:56. It was far
past my expectations for this race.
Mile
11 – 8:58
Mile
12 – 8:56
Mile
13 – 8:47
Mile
0.10 - :48
I
had to pause for a moment after the finish to catch my breathe. I had hoped to
break into the 1:57’s and went right past it. I was exhausted, but giddy
beyond belief! The thrill of a new
PR never gets old. I thrive on
pushing my limits and constantly proving to myself that I am capable of
more. I ran a near perfect race – smart, well-paced and well-fueled. No blisters, chaffing and mild soreness the following day. In my heart, I believe it was the best I had that day. My smile was huge as I exited the finish chute… and searched
for the Moomer’s ice cream!!
Official
Chip Time: 1:56:44
(8:54 pace)
#40 out of 242 Division F35-39
#610 out of 2204 Overall
EVENT NOTES: The Bayshore Marathon is a tough event to secure a race bib. On opening
day of registration, their website was completely overloaded and it took nearly
20 times for my registration to go through properly. The half marathon sold out in hours; the full and 10k
followed shortly thereafter. With such
great demand, I had high expectations of the event. The course was indeed the drawing point and worth the $80 entry fee.
Pre-race communication was good, with monthly newsletters to keep you up to
date. I was amused by the stern directions. Packet pickup on Friday night was quick with only a couple stations
inside the high school gym. Parking and traffic were a nightmare though, since there a 5k being held at the same time. The morning of the race took tricky
coordination – to bus over 2000 runners to the start of the half marathon
(individual dropoff was pretty much impossible with the closed roads). The lines to load the buses were
insanely long. We waited for
nearly 40 minutes to board a bus… and then another 30 in the porta-potty line when we reached the starting area. Once the race started, I enjoyed the Bayshore… large visible mile
markers, superb course, and great volunteers throughout the race. I was early
through the aid stops, but they were well stocked with water, Gatorade, GU gels/chews and fruit. I’d be
curious how they held up for the 4:30 marathoners? I have to say that this course is a tough one for
family to move around to see their runner. To catch me at the halfway
point, my hubby drove out the peninsula’s main road and then had to load up
onto a spectator bus to even get close to the race course. (Even the side roads
were closed.) As they came back
into TC, traffic was so busy that they barely caught me before my finish. The post-race party had plenty of the standard
food – bagels, bananas, chocolate milk, cookies, oranges… and ice cream! The finishing
chute got runners off the track fast and into a large area where they could
meetup with family. The bonus for
families was the two big playgrounds to entertain the kiddos. Overall, I give the Bayshore a B+,
heavily influenced by the PR worthy course.
for her wonderful hospitality to my family while we visited her
hometown of Traverse City. It was so nice to finally meet you.
Thank you, thank you!!
Setting goals can be scary.
