A clydesdale no more!

Halloween Half Marathon (pacer)

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Location:

Woods Cross,UT,USA

Member Since:

May 01, 2006

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Age Division Winner

Running Accomplishments:

Current Running Life:
5k: 17:50 (2010 NSL)
10k: 38:20 (2007 Des News)
1/2 Marathon: 1:23:30 (2009 Provo Half)
Marathon: 2:53:46 (2007 St George)

Short-Term Running Goals:

Long-Term Running Goals:

Personal:

Daddy to 3 great kids - 16 year old son and 11 year old twin daughters

I do not know what tomorrow will bring but I do know it will start with a run.

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Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	0.00	Year:	0.00
Saucony Grid A2 Lifetime Miles:						125.40
GoRun2 Lifetime Miles:						53.70
Adrenaline 2014 Blue (1) Lifetime Miles:						442.70
Adrenaline 2014 Red (1) Lifetime Miles:						429.20

Sat, Oct 29, 2011

Race: Halloween Half Marathon (pacer) (13.1 Miles) 01:40:22

Slow miles	Fast miles	Total Distance
1.00	13.10	14.10

Ran the Halloween Half Marathon as the 1:40 pacer with Rob and Kris. 1:40 was perfect for me because it is very close to my natural training pace so I would be able to lock in the pace easily and the run wouldn't be too much of a push.

I will get all of my complaints out of the way here. Traffic in Utah County is a mess, the packet pickup was a complete joke and waiting for the busses for an hour was ridiculous. This race was way too big for one person to handle. If he wants to maintain the size, the RD needs to bring in help. There are a few very simple things that could be done to clean up the biggest issues.

The race started and it was very congested at the start. Once we started rolling, I could tell that Rob and I had a very good sense of what the pace was supposed to be (with the help of the Garmin) but we had to reel in Kris' youthful exuberance. I was very glad to have Rob there with his jokes (even though they were corny) and the pace band he created. Here are our splits compared to the target pace.

Mile Split Target

1 7:19 7:21

2 7:06 7;20

3 6:58 7:09

4 7:13 7:06

5 7:28 7:25

6 7:59 8:01

7 7:51 8:08

8 7:47 7:51

9 7:36 7:36

10 7:42 7:52

11 7:48 7:45

12 7:51 7:50

13 8:37 7:48

0.1 1:07 0:47

Total 1:40:22 1:39:59

We had a 45 second cushion going into the last mile (due to miles 2, 3, 7 and 10) so we told the group of people running with us to go ahead. We then tried encouraging the runners behind us to catch up to us. We lost more time than we planned but the course was long so in reality being 20 seconds late was due to the extra 0.05 miles that we ran.

This is a great way to participate in a race without having to punish yourself during the run. There is a part of me that feels like a quitter for not actually racing this race and finding an excuse to not push myself. I'm definitely in one of those funks again where I don't feel like much of a runner and am having a hard time doing the things necessary to become a runner again. Overall it was a good experience and I would definitely do it again.

Adrenaline 2011 4 Miles: 14.10

Comments

From Kelli on Sun, Oct 30, 2011 at 22:21:47 from 71.219.90.3

I am in the same funk...that is WHY pacing is what I want to do for a bit. I hope it will get me to have that racing desire back!

It was great to meet you for a second while hunting for our drop bags! Totally agree about the traffic in Provo, that was an absolute nightmare. I left Herriman at 3:10, got to the mall at 4:30 and then stayed until 8 just shopping around so i would not have to drive back in it! I hate traffic.

Nice job on the pacing, I am very sore even though I was not pushing. How about you?

From Andy on Sun, Oct 30, 2011 at 22:28:54 from 174.52.172.236

My calves are pretty sore which I didn't expect. I love pacing and think it is a great way to experience a race. I just worry that I will lose the racing edge (as if I ever really had it).

From Kelli on Sun, Oct 30, 2011 at 22:36:52 from 71.219.90.3

Yep, calves hurt. I am hobbling today, way more than I thought I would.

Throw in a race here and there, all will be well. I want to quit and just pace for life. ;o)

From Rob on Sun, Oct 30, 2011 at 22:52:32 from 204.15.86.95

Hey it was great meeting you, I have been to your blog tons of times but didn't put it together until now. I had so much fun, I hope I can run with you again sometime.

From timp on Mon, Oct 31, 2011 at 08:21:51 from 99.110.188.230

nice job Andy. Pacing sounds kind of fun.

that traffic and all that waiting does not sound fun.

you'll get out of that funk soon.

From Smooth on Mon, Oct 31, 2011 at 22:54:38 from 174.27.193.64

GREAT JOB pacing to perfection! Just want you to know I think you are a very talented runner, and very cool too! :) :) :)

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