Word Perv

On Sunday I ran the Zooma Half-Marathon in Annapolis and I shattered my personal record (PR) for this distance.

The day before I was talking to the Pilot and he asked what my goal was for the race. I stated I would like to beat my PR, which was set in March 2008 when I ran the National Half-Marathon in 1:52:10, which is an 8:34 pace. I am a stronger runner than I was a year ago, but that day also brought ideal running conditions – cool and clear. Sunday’s predicted weather was warm and clear. Nonetheless, this was my goal.

Saturday night my friend Kristina stayed with me as she was running the 10k the next day. Rather than metroing to me early Sunday morning, or me trekking into DC to pick her up, it seemed easiest if she crashed with me the night before. Of course this also meant we stayed up talking till nearly midnight and with my alarm set for 4:45am, I knew I’d be tired in the morning.

Sure enough, Sunday morning I hit the snooze on my clock, allowing an extra 8 minutes of precious sleep. Once up and moving Daisy hopped up and crawled under the bed. I drug her out and clipped her collar around her neck, followed by her leash. We stepped outside into rain. Heavy rain. Then the thunder clapped and Daisy pulled hard on the leash, wanting to go back inside (she’s afraid of thunder and I don’t torture her by forcing her to walk in it).

Back inside I filled my cup with coffee and downed a banana – my traditional pre-race meal. I also pulled out the GU I would need for my race and a visor to block the unexpected rain.

With coffee cup in hand, Kristina and I jumped in the car and headed to Annapolis. The rain let up a little bit once we got to Annapolis, but not enough to get traffic moving. Once we were close to the Naval Academy Stadium, where the race was to start, the traffic slowed to a stop, taking over 20 minutes to creep a mile. We snapped a quick picture before pulling into the lot.

Finally parked Kristina dashed off to hit the porta-potty, while me being the farm girl that I am simply squatted and peed by my car. Hey, I had to go, I was already late for the race, and I certainly didn’t want to wait in line.

Rolling on some Glide quickly I turned and sprinted to the start. Even though it was rainy rather than hot and humid – the conditions that caused me to chaff in the past during GW Parkway and the Richmond Marathon – I no longer take chances and quickly apply Glide before every run. My nipples are extremely thankful I do this. So Glide on, I sprinted to the start, hearing them announce as I crossed the start line that they were over 3 minutes into the race.

Since I started late, I was at the very end of the pack. This resulted in me spending the first two miles bobbing and weaving around people, up onto curbs, and jumping over traffic cones and splashing through deep puddles in an effort to move forward. Once the 10k runners broke off at their turn around point the pack opened up a bit and I was able to pass people with ease.

My good buddy Mike, or LPF as he’s known among friends, has a running strategy that goes a little something like this: pass but don’t be passed. Since I had forgotten my watch that morning and had nothing to gauge my time against, I decided to employ this method and began picking people in front of me as a target, then pushing forward to pass them. If it was a guy they were an even bigger target, for the Zooma Half is a women’s race series. Needless to say, I was very successful in my endeavor and I began passing people steadily.

I hit the turn around point and it was at Mile 9 that I was passed by two guys in quick succession. I was particularly upset about one of the guys because I had passed him at Mile 7 and I heard him on my feet for nearly a half-mile before he passed me. Nonetheless, he was pushing a pace I didn’t think I could sustain for the remaining 4.1 miles so I let him go. I pushed on, passing people as I went.

Just after Mile 11 we transitioned back to the road from the bike path we’d been running on. Here’s where I first began to feel a little fatigued. I am notorious for playing head games with myself while running and I know this has contributed to some less-than-stellar performances. I was determined to approach this race differently and from the beginning of the race – hell, from the day before the race – I only allowed positive thoughts about the race and my performance. So the fatigue I felt at Mile 11 was ignored. In fact, I answered that fatigue by picking up my pace by just a fraction. I’d show that fatigue who was in charge – ME! Unfortunately halfway into Mile 11 I was passed by a woman – the first woman in the race to pass me.

Not at all deterred, I surged forward, holding my pace steady as I propelled my body forward up the last two miles. Yes, I said UP the last two miles. Whoever designed this course should be slapped silly because having two miles of hills at the end is pure torture.

It was at Mile 12, during an uphill climb, that I was passed by two more people, a man and a woman. I would hold my own the rest of the race and no others would pass me. Overall, I think my friend Mike would be proud of my first attempt at his method, as I was passed only by five people – three men and two women.

Rounding the corner at Mile 13 I expected to see the traditional balloon arch that welcomes most runners to the finish line. Instead I saw a race volunteer directing me up a sidewalk. A sidewalk?! What the fuck?! Then I rounded a small corner and heard my friend Athena yell my name. “Keep going!!” she shouted and I kicked it into high gear, sprinting to the finish with a smile on my face.

My official race time is 1:47:17 and I ran at an 8:12 pace. Overall I finished 65th of 1182 and in my age group (30-34 year old females) I got 12th of 235. Yes, I kicked a little ass. Here I am, immediately after the race, having just pulled off my shoes to allow my wet feet to breath.

BTW, that shirt I’ve got on – the best racing shirt I have ever worn. It’s Under Armour’s Arbora Tank and it is fantastic! I’m not just saying that because they outfit me when I run, the tank is fantastic – it didn’t ride up (my biggest problem and pet peeve) and it didn’t rub or chaff at all. I am definitely going to be purchasing several more, in every color available.

I then stripped down, pulling on a sundress that was perfect for the now sunny and clear day. Kristina and I headed to meet our friends Athena and Carie who had also run the race. But first we made a pit stop for a box lunch (provided as part of the post-race goodies to the runners) and wine (another freebie). Here I am, happy with my cup of red.

The four of us sat eating and talking and drinking wine in the sun, recapping our individual performances and our thoughts on the race.

Ultimately we would learn Athena, who is standing beside me in the above picture, placed 1st in her division (24-29 females) with an amazing time of 1:34:57, which is a 7:19 pace. In fact, we missed the announcement so I asked (made?) the guy announce that age group again and when he said Athena’s name I screamed and yelled her name along with, “That’s my friend!!!” What can I say, I was excited for her!

As we sat and talked we realized we had run low on wine so we grabbed a refill. Now remember there was four of us drinking. And yes, I realize there’s eight cups there. I think in the end we each drank what is equivalent to three big glasses of wine. We ran hard, we deserved it.

After the race we parted ways, Kristina and I heading back to my car to trek back home, both of us tired and pleased with the day.

Overall I am fantastically happy with my performance. Without a watch nor a single race clock along the course (something I was not happy about!), my only gauge to how I was doing was how I felt. I am notoriously bad at pacing and have a very bad habit of going out way too fast. While I think I went out fast as usual, I did this in part to get through the pack to a place where I could settle into my pace. With the exception of the last uphill climb at Mile 12, I feel I held my pace pretty consistently throughout the race. What’s better is how I felt mentally during this race. I felt strong and I just kept moving forward, focusing on the person in front of me and on overtaking him or her. Today’s race made me remember how I love racing, not just the feeling at the end of the race. It’s a great feeling. Now, I have to find my next race!