Philly RnR Half Race Report

Once again we had the best weather for this race. If anything it was a little warm but it was sunny and gorgeous out. Leading up to Sunday I had phantom pains like crazy.* To the point where I was convinced something was actually wrong with the Achilles again. I decided that I wouldn't make up my mind as to what to do come Sunday until I lined up at the corral. Not how I prefer to do things, but it was the only way to keep me from losing my mind.

I slept great on Saturday night and woke up Sunday morning completely calm. I haven't had any real bad race jitters since Philly marathon last year. I guess nothing will ever compare to the angst of going for that BQ. When I got down to the start of the race I got a little nervous because I still hadn't figured out what I wanted to do. But I kept thinking that shooting for a 1:40, 7 weeks since the boot, was being a little too cocky based on a 5k and literally no preparation for that pace. There was one thing I knew for sure when I lined up in the corral...I didn't want this to be a miserable experience. This is probably my favorite race and I wanted to enjoy it, while still putting in a good effort. So a few minutes before the gun went off, I decided to start off at 8 minute miles, which is quicker than my goal marathon pace.

Race started in waves and running through the city was tight in spots. My legs felt pretty heavy around mile 3 but this is par for the course with me. I started having some doubts in myself early on and that worried me a bit. If I could only shut off my head when I ran I'd be in great shape! Heading out of the city and back pass the start at the art museum really picked me up. There was a lot of crowd support and I was heading onto familiar territory and knew exactly what I had in store for me. The 4 miles out Kelly Drive were a little boring and there were a few times I wondered if I mentally had this in me. I ran into a few other Brooks IDers, two of which were struggling, so I took some time to slow down and run a bit with them. There was no mistaking us out there on the course, we were glowing in our little uniforms! Which by the way, weren't so bad to wear. After a few playful jabs from some of my running club friends, I was happy to be wearing it...I'm a sponsored runner and that's pretty freaking cool!

When I hit the turn around spot at Falls Bridge and only had 4 miles left, the miles ticked by quickly. At this point I wasn't really paying attention to my pace or projected finish time. I realized during the race that I didn't care too much about my finish time and eventually stopped paying attention to my pace and the clocks. With a mile left in the race, I had a ton left in the tank. I held back until I got a little closer to the finish because I knew we had a bit of a hill and then I kicked it into high gear. I finished feeling great!

Official Time -- 1:43:58

Average Pace -- 7:56

Overall -- 1988 / 15411

Division -- 88 / 1603

I won't lie; my legs were a little tired while running but I felt absolutely fine when I crossed that finish line. Throughout the race, I could easily hold a conversation and never once felt taxed or out of breath. I even could have kept going beyond the 13.1 miles if I had to. Standing around after the race, I didn't even feel like I had just run, except for the fact that one beer made me feel a little silly. So while this wasn't a PR for me, it served another purpose...if this pace was manageable, maybe a 8:12 for Philly marathon would be doable if I put in the time and effort to get ready for it (I did some thinking about racing Philly yesterday throughout the race, more on that another day).

Overall, it was a GREAT day! I ran smart and enjoyed the race. I'm happy with my decision not to race it and am even happier that a 1:43:58 finish felt almost easy.

*I have not had ONE pain since Saturday night. The Achilles didn't bother me a bit yesterday and even this morning, it feels fine. Those phantom pains are enough to send me over the edge.