Race Report: Hyannis Half Marathon

SUMMARY

·                     Date: Sunday, Feb 27, 2011, 10:00am start

·                     Location: Hyannis, MA

·                     Conditions: 36F, little to no wind, snowing and wet ground

·                     Distance: Half Marathon / 13.1 mile race (mostly flat, some gradual uphill sections)

·                     Finish time: 1:33:43

·                     Average pace: 7:09 / mile (even pacing throughout)

·                     Overall Finish: 185th out of 2,684 total runners

·                     Age Group: 51st out of 319 runners in the M30-39 Age Group

PRE-RACE

Had whole grain pasta and Masoor Dal (lentils) for dinner the night before. Didn’t sleep too well – got only 4 hours of Zzzzz, ah well. Arose at 6am, had some more lentils for breakfast which totally hit the spot. Finished getting ready and stepped outside to this view of my block:

Morning snow on Marlborough Street, Boston, MA

It had snowed overnight and continued through the morning, just a couple inches, nothing too much. Picked up friends James and Alison and headed down to the Cape noshing on a PowerBar and sipping Gatorade. Arrived with enough time to pick up my race packet, shake Dick Hoyt’s hand at the race expo, relax for a bit and then warm up. Saw a few friends before the start of the run: Jess, Nancy, Rich, Eric, Martin and others.

THE RACE

Could have warmed up more, but could get away with that in a race this distance. It was still snowing at the start – big, light fluffy flakes in my eyes, on my nose, coming down at a fair clip while standing in the starting corral. I wore shorts, t-shirt, gloves and a headband. Ran the race in new, barely broken in Asics Gel Hyper Speed 4s (only put six miles on them prior to this race), low cut SmartWool socks and also wore my heart rate monitor. Turned on the GPS at the start, but made sure to hit my stopwatch to get splits every mile. Started out feeling well through the first mile and kept trying to convince myself to take it a bit slower and easy, but I just couldn’t resist racing it outright. Worked hard through the run, but remember smiling a lot and having fun too. A couple pics and a mile-by-mile account:

Snowing during the early miles. Me in the center with the headband, armband and knee strap.

Close-up of prior picture. Mid-stride.

Cruising with a good sized pack of runners.

Close-up of the prior picture. Definitely making an effort as you can see on my face.

Mile 1: Snow falling, feeling pretty good through this first mile.
Mile 2: Debating how hard I should run this race.
Mile 3: Warmed up and settling into a pace. First views of the vast ocean.
Mile 4: It’s cold and wet out there. Lots of puddles, toes are soggy.
Mile 5: Stopped snowing. The 10k runners peeled off for their finish opening up the course. Grabbed a couple sips of Gatorade.
Mile 6: At this point, I’ve decided to keep this pace and see how fast I can run.
Mile 7: More beachfront and ocean views.
Mile 8: Felt like molasses going up a long, gradual uphill section, didn’t pass anyone, but no one passed me either. Took the first and only of the three GU gels that I carried with me. Washed it down with a couple sips of water.
Mile 9: Came upon Brian from triathlon shop Fast Splits. Shocked to see him since he’s super fast, but this was just a training run for him, so he was just cruising through the race. After sharing a chuckle over him accidentally kicking a fallen tree branch into the back of my legs, he passed me back and went on ahead to finish.
Mile 10: Got a “Stylish Nilesh” shout-out from TMIRCEr Andy as he was in the zone passing by me. Crossed paths with him once more further down the stretch.
Mile 11: Commiserated with a fellow runner as I saw him shaking his hands out as he ran. We both had the same experience at the prior water stop: “spilled more Gatorade on my gloves than got in my mouth.”
Mile 12: Hands and feet are pretty cold, sense the finish line and start to speed up.
Mile 13: Pushed the pace even more through this last mile.
Mile 13.1: Final surge to the finish line, passed a couple people. Heart rate jumped up to 190 beats per minute. Crossed the finish line, saw my buddy James (who ran the 10k) and quickly got inside to warm up and stretch my very tight left calf muscle.

Here are mile splits (clocked on my stopwatch) and average heart rate info:

Happy to see my mile splits were relatively even throughout the run.

See Feb 27th on Endomondo for workout summary.

POST RACE PARTY AND RESULTS

Nice post race party. Swapped stories with fellow runners and ate lots of warm, hearty Minestrone soup, a couple bananas and some other snacks. Left calf and achilles tendon got very tight, so worked at them a little bit to keep them loose.

Finish time (13.1 miles): 1:33:43 (pace: 7:09/mile)
Finish place (overall): 185th out of 2,684 runners
Finish place (age group, M30-39): 51st out of 319 runners

Happy with this race as a checkpoint for a possible spring marathon...

[Race photos credit to Ted Tyler/Coolrunning.com.]

Run or No Run?

Today was a day like most others this winter. I woke up and headed off to work. I also brought my running gear thinking I would fit in a lunchtime run around the lake near my office. Got to work, gave a presentation in the morning, and before I knew it midday had rolled around. Time for me to change up and head out for a quick dart through the chilled winter's air. But something held me back.

Was today not a good day for a run?

I vacillated back and forth on this one. Picking up my bag and then putting it back down. Twice. Stalling by chatting with an officemate who asked me to go to lunch. Hmmm, that seemed like a much better proposition than running out in the cold. But wait, am I kidding? How wimpy am I? It's not even that cold outside today, and the roads are totally clear.

It's not always been easy to get myself up and out for some of these wintertime runs, whether solo or with a run club. The group runs add a better dimension of "peer pressure" and fun camaraderie - but still, even those have been tough. It's been many an evening this year where a group of us have left the warm comforts of the Crossroads bar, shoved ourselves like sardines on a rush-hour Green line train out to Woodland - and with every stop (above ground), when those doors open letting people off and on, the harsh chill of cold air would whip right in through the compartment, and I would occasionally think to myself, "What the heck am I doing? Why am I doing this? In shorts nonetheless. People are right, I must be a little crazy." That feeling stays with me, especially strong through the last few stops, until Woodland comes. By then I've retied my laces, had a few stretches, and chatted up my fellow runners enough to distract myself from meeting that initial wall of cold air upon stepping off the train.

Thankfully, once we step off the train, everything changes. Every moment of doubt, uncertainty, and "wimpyness" is washed away with a feeling of correctness. We step off that train, and in a matter of moments - it's down to business. A sea of high visibility gear cruises down alongside the road. In the bone-chilling cold, a wave of warmth and comfort blankets me, it's a feeling I'll never get tired of, and hopefully will never stop pursuing. The runs invariably comprise chattiness and storytelling with silent, zen-like focus on breath and steps. As much as I sometimes just don't want to get up and out, I'm almost always glad that I did anyway.

Well, fast forward back to today, cause we've got to live in the present. Am I going to run or not? Is this one of those days that I don't feel like running, but should anyway? Or should I listen to what my body and inner voice is telling me, and just skip it. I mean it's just one day. Nothing bad is going to happen if I don't run today, right?

For that moment, I decide not to run. Instead, I grab a bite to eat with my colleague and then get back to work. Still an itch compels me to continue rationalizing the possibility of a run today. I can always carve out time later in the day for a run. Or I can always go home and run later in the evening. "Sure I can", I think - mildly convincing at best.

The afternoon ticks away, and by late afternoon it seems I can no longer ignore the itch for a run. I carve out some time at work, and can reasonably get that quick jaunt in after all. This was going to be great. I was getting myself all psyched up for it. I grabbed my bag and headed to the locker room. Changed into my shorts, long-sleeve shirt, socks and running shoes. Stuffed my ID badge/access card in my shorts pocket, grabbed my gloves and headband and took two steps out the locker room door. Something was still not right. I stood there for a minute in contemplation, then turned around, re-dressed back into my work clothes and went back to work.

If it doesn't feel right, it just might not be the right time for a run. Who knows for sure. Sometimes you just have to go with your gut. Yes, this post was a whole lot of rambling for not having run. Sorry, very anti-climactic, I know. I've run 55 miles in the past 11 consecutive days, and with a race coming up this weekend, maybe I should give the body a rest. My left knee seems to be doing much better, but that could be a result of my tight left calf muscle compensating? See, now I'm starting to rationalize not going for a run. Ugh. Enough second guessing. "Live again to run another day", I say.

Instead of a run today, I polished off the final pages of my new favorite book...

Three Films

I'm not a big movie buff, but have enjoyed a few independent films about running and cycling over the past few months. I recommend all of them. Here are brief recaps:

Bicycle Dreams: The Race Across America
http://www.bicycledreamsmovie.com/
The story of RAAM, the Race Across America - a non-stop cycling race across the country. The film depicts the unbelievable degree of endurance cyclists persevere forgoing sleep while cycling straight through the night on challenging terrain across the country. The top riders complete the 3,000 mile journey from west coast to east coast in a mere 8 to 10 days. This film covers the physical and mental challenges faced by the riders, including riding through injuries sustained through fatigue, mental exhaustion, family concern, and the untimely passing of a fellow rider. Pushing the human body to its physical limit is definitely a core theme.

Hood-to-Coast: Everyday People, Extraordinary Journey
http://www.hoodtocoastmovie.com/
This movie depicted a 200-mile relay race in Oregon, runners in teams cover the distance from Mt. Hood through the backroads of Oregon to the coastline. For me this film was reminiscent of when I did a similar event on the east coast, the Reach-the-Beach relay in New Hampshire where I was part of a team of 12 runners that ran 200 miles non-stop one individual segment at a time until we completed the distance. The Hood-to-Coast film depicted several different teams and individual runners participating. There was the older female who the prior year literally had a heart attack on the course, but was resuscitated and then returned the next year to try to complete the race with her team despite her doctor's orders. There was the 'slacker' team who seemed to thrive off pounding more beers than miles in their so-called "training". And there were other veteran running teams including a competitive elite squad who were all business. This film was truly entertaining and showcased the true spirit and camaraderie between runners of all kinds.

The Ride
http://www.noopportunitywasted.com/
Amazing Race tv host Phil Keoghan wanted to do something for his 40th birthday. He decided to ride his bike across the USA, from California to New York, and also in the process raise money and awareness to fight Multiple Sclerosis. Phil not only attempts a tremendous feat of riding his bike across the country in 40 days, but also aims to stick to a rigorous schedule of stops at different towns along the route for public appearances, meeting with people affected by MS and holding media events. Phil rode the entire distance himself, and had fellow riders accompany him through various stretches as well. In addition to all the drama, the film was downright hilarious! Phil's character really comes out in every aspect. A bonus of seeing this film in person at a theater in Boston was that Phil himself was present for the screening, saying a few words before the screening and doing a brief Q&A afterwards. Phil did say he left out a few of the less than appealing elements of the journey, like him vomiting while straddling his bike on the side of the road and stuff like that, but he still showed the realistic side of the challenge including his physical and mental fatigue, relationships with friends and family, stories of those affected by MS, and even a crash on a rainy day as they hit some rough terrain. One question from the crowd was "What do you think about when you're riding alone for so much time?" Phil had a great response, paraphrased: "Do you remember that Window's utility Norton Defragment that lets you clean up your hard drive, rearranging and repacking all the segments of information into a more easy to deal with format? Well, it's kind of like that. Going out there lets me process all these various things in life and reorder and structure them so I can deal with them more effectively." (I'm sure I didn't do his response justice, but it was something like that.) Anyway, a great all-around film!

Super Sunday 10k Cancelled

So earlier in the week, the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and the State Police officially cancelled the Super Sunday 5k/10k (scheduled to be held today, Sunday, February 6th) for reasons of public safety due to the tough road and pathway conditions from all the recent snow.

So instead of racing this 10k, I fit in a long run (longer distance run at an intentionally slower pace; also called "lsd" for long slow distance). The plan was to run from home out to the 10k course, run the course (and see what the conditions were actually like today) and then run back. The 10k route is in South Boston past the seaport area, starting near the Bayside Expo Center, along several of the beaches, including Carson Beach, and then Pleasure Bay, around Castle Island to Fort Independence - and then back.

The temperature was about 38F though my first steps onto the sidewalk were met with slippery black ice where I slipped and slid but thankfully never fell. The rest of the run through the city to the coast was similar, lots of icy sidewalks flooded with melted snow, streets with traffic, etc. to make it to where the race was supposed to start. One small missed turn, but quickly corrected.

(Note: Click on any image to enlarge.)

Bayside Expo Center

From the Bayside Expo Center, tried running on the sidewalk, but that was too treacherous, so stuck to the side of the road. I think there were a lot of other folks who were supposed to run the race that had the same idea to run the route anyway - lots of other runners were out there. Anyway, after winding along the side of William J Day Blvd, got to Pleasure Bay and took a right onto the Head Island Causeway, a paved walking path that jutted out into the harbor. This path was mostly in good shape, plowed and shoveled, except for some sections with large puddles. That was a theme to be repeated. Got to one end of the causeway, and saw a nice covered area with a good view of Spectacle Island.

Head Island Causeway starting out and around Pleasure Bay

View of Fort Independence looking across Pleasure Bay from the Head Island Causeway

One end of the Head Island Causeway, park area overlooking Spectacle Island in the distance

View of Spectacle Island in the Boston Harbor from the Head Island Causeway

Continuing along the causeway led to Castle Island and the grand Fort Independence. The 10k route was supposed to go around the outer perimeter of Castle Island, go up a small hill and then hug the edges of Fort Independence, but when I attempted to go up the small hill, I was met with an extremely iced over pathway - it was unrunnable.

Continuing along the Head Island Causeway to Castle Island/Fort Independence

Crazy flooding along the Head Island Causeway (found out the hard way by running through it)

Fort Independence, Castle Island

Fort Independence, Castle Island

Fort Independence, Castle Island

Very icy, slippery and unrunnable pathway up to Fort Independence

So I skipped it and just continued on along the Head Island Causeway and William J Day Blvd back towards the Bayside Expo Center. Here's a shot of me on my way back with Fort Independence and Pleasure Bay in the background. Unfortunately, my smart phone's running application/GPS stopped working just past mile 8. I continued re-tracing my route and finished the run.

William J Day Blvd looking back to Castle Island/Fort Independence

Me with Fort Independence and Pleasure Bay in the background

Total distance, time (est.): 12.4 miles, 1:55:28. The first of many longer runs to come...

A recap of the race cancellation: I thought they cancelled the race a bit early and could have done more to clear the paths along the causeway, though clearing the paths right around Fort Independence would have been far more difficult. In the end, I understand why they cancelled the 10k, but really didn't see any reason for them to cancel the 5k which could have been run on a clearly plowed roadway. Perhaps they could have allowed all the 10k runners to run the 5k instead?