First real race post injury.
I felt extremely nervous the days leading up to this one not because of how I would do as far as time goes but because I ran on the pavement only twice in about 5 mos and I was afraid I would feel the pain in my knee again.
I went to the Expo Saturday morning right when they opened. That Expo is Ok...it would be better if the layout was different...more space ...the Brooks area is big and the rest of the vendors are all cramped in a maze. I visited the NUUN folks and signed up for 2 races while I was there: the OC half marathon and also the RnR Los Angeles for 2014. I saw the table for the LA marathon....was tempted but.....decided to wait.
Race started right on time at 7:30 am. It was very foggy outside. Perfect weather for me.
I wanted to run the first 10k slower than the second one and start with the run/walk method a la Galloway. It feels weird to walk early in a race but I did it anyway. I was feeling pretty good and that gave me confidence.
This race is fun. Lots of people in crazy costumes everywhere. Lots of entertainment along the course. The course has 2 loops and in between the 2 it passes where the finish line is. That is the only thing I don't like about that race, seeing the finish line at mile 6 is a little hard on the morale. I saw the leaders coming down ...fast people...!
Last year I missed seeing my family on the course but not this year! I carried my phone with me so I knew where they were.
Mile 6
It's shortly after that that I saw the finish line....makes you want to make a u-turn!!
So at half point I was doing good and my time was better than I expected and I was happy I did not go out too fast like I always do.
I saw Doctor Dribble on the course..have you ever seen him at your races...very impressive guy...you should check him out on Instagram
I picked up the pace and was feeling ok but I felt the darn pain in my knee.
I cannot pretend like I didn't.... I did.
It came and went but it was the same sharp pain.
I found that what made it worst was starting running after a walking break even if I was very careful to always start on the other side.
While running I did not feel pain.
I am not sure what to make of that.
The second half of my race was faster. I don't know where that came from. I passed the 10 miles mark and had like as second wind. I did not even come close to throwing up this time!
The last section is awesome.. all downhill and there were people lined up and supporting the runners.
The course goes in a tunnel twice in the second loop and I lost the signal of my Garmin in there. Last year I got it back but not this year...when I got out my watch was telling me I was running at 5:46 pace! Yeah right!...time was the only date that was still ok.
So from mile 8 until the end I has no pace and distance references except the mile markers.
Most of the people were nice and having a good time...saw 2 people jump and cross on the other side to cut the course short....does not matter to me that they would do that but they did it in a very dangerous way cutting fast people way too close and that I think is very stupid. One guy hit me really hard when I was waiting to cross to use the ports potty..that was not ok with me and I yelled some nice French words to him. I was not in anyone's way... I was next to a cone and he ran into my shoulder on purpose...idiot....
Coming down to the finish line....me nice heel striking...mister vicking much better form!
That's better than dry hives!
Sooooo a PR for Caro. This shows that negative splits is a smart strategy. I must remember that.
That is a positive and no throwing up on the finish mat...another plus....
Feeling the sharp pain......pretty big negative point.
Garmin says 2:17:55
Official time says 2:12:19.
I am going with Garmin. It is impossible that I ran 2:12
I emailed RnR to have that time adjusted.
I did not record a split at the 10 miles marker, I know I stepped on the mat..I remember it.
It is not important but that tells me maybe something was off with my chip. 2:12...not possible.
That race has the best post race goodies.
Water bottle, power bars....big Gatorade, 2 kind of chocolate milk, chips, fruit, my hands were full!
Too bad race pics are ridiculously expensive!
I like these one
12 comments:
Hmmm...why do you think your chip time was off?
In my last half I didn't record a 15k split...same thing, I remember stepping on the mat. I know my time is right though because I was watching my Garmin obsessively.
Regardless, awesome job!! So glad you came back with a PR. The continued knee pain stinks. It's weird...mine tends to hurt more when I walk than when I run, but once it starts hurting then it's pretty much going to keep hurting. Dumb knees.
"First real race post injury."
YAY!!! Doesn't that feel good!! Sorry the pain in your knee came back, ugh. Great job on the negative split and the PR, so happy for you :)
The negative split in a race is such a great feeling, I've only managed it a few times. Congrats on a GREAT race esp post injury!! And yeah, yeah for not feeling bad at the end...sorry the knee pain was still there though. Hopefully it doesn't linger. Great job Caroline!
Great job. I need to try negative splits.
Congratulations on your first race post injury! I remember that day for myself when I ran the OC Half. Glad to see you back out there. Love the pictures too!
Nice comeback PR! Your fans are the best. Love your family.
Wow, first race post injury and you get a half marathon PR? Awesome! Looked like absolutely perfect running weather.
Congrats on the comeback half girl!!!! So excited for you, gotta love when everything comes together and you have a great race like that. Even better, a PR post injury! Sweet, sweet reward.
What a comeback!! No better way than with a PR!! I hope your knee pain is under control and you are back to running pain-free.
You have to trust the official time.
I hope that your recovery is complete and now you can run as you like.
Congrats on the race.
Great photos.
and a side note, but maybe your official time is correct? As long as you step on all mats in the race, I would think that it's accurate. Maybe also worth looking into whether a run/walk strategy might be best? Could even be like a 9 run: 1 walk every mile or something, not sure what the best ratio would be. I've read that even marathoners who do races in 3 hours sometimes do run/walk ratios since it gives them faster races. I guess I walk through water stops, which are every 2 miles, so that is my walk break.
Glad you had a great race! When I paced my SIL in Toronto 2 weeks ago I couldn't find my results...thought my chip was broken. Turns out they had me in the under 19 category! I seriously considered not having it fixed! Lol!
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