Pre Race

I stayed with my Dad at his downtown hotel the night before the race because it made race day logistic much easier for me. The wake-up call came at 4am and I quickly got changed, made some green tea and headed out the door. I walked the six blocks to the Westin and immediately boarded a waiting shuttle bus (big yellow school bus) to the start line. It was about 4:45 am by the time I arrived at the start line. I did a quick walk around to get the lay of the land before things got too crowded and then settled down on the grass to eat my breakfast and relax. I checked my gear bag at about 6am, took one final trip through the porta potty line and then entered my start corral.

My projected finish time of 1:54 put me in corral six. I think there were about 35 corrals for the 25,000 registered runners (17,500 in the half, 5,000 in the full). This is definitely the biggest race I’ve ever run. I’ve heard that other runners had problems getting to the start line. My advice to future runners is to take the shuttle and get there early!

As I was waiting for the race to start I really had no expectations for the day. I just wanted to have a good time and enjoy my last Seattle long run. I’d done nine weeks of really solid training but then I finished my PhD and went on vacation so running took a back seat. In other words I did a two week taper of 3 runs for a total of 15 miles. I had no plan, no real goal pace and no worries.

Miles 1-5 (9:01, 8:26, 8:32, 8:22, 9:11)

The first mile was crowded but I didn’t really suffer any major bunching problems. I tried to keep things easy and I was happy this mile came in under 9:09 (the pace for a two hour half). The first few miles through Tukwila and Ranier Valley were new running ground for me so I never knew what would be around the next corner. There were a few small hills but nothing major and I was able to settle into a reasonably comfortable pace. The worst hill of the day came during the fifth mile. Almost the entire mile was uphill with approximately 150 ft of elevation gained. It was tough but nothing compared to Prospect Point in the Vancouver half. I ran up the whole thing and was pretty happy with the 9:11 split for mile 5.

Keeping with the rock n roll theme of the race there were bands playing every mile. That was a fun distraction. There were also cheer squads whose enthusiasm I greatly appreciated. The water stations and volunteers were awesome which was good because I chose to run without my own hand held water bottle.

Miles 6-10 (8:21, 8:07, 8:36, 8:31, ?:??)

During the sixth mile we recovered from the previous mile’s big climb with a very steep downhill. There was actually a volunteer warning runners about the downhill. It was so steep people were running with there arms out for balance. I tired to run relaxed like a rag doll and roll down the hill. I took my only gel of the race somewhere in mile 6. I thought I should get one down but I didn’t really feel like I needed it. Miles 7, 8 and 9 were very familiar to me. We ran north along Lake Washington Blvd. This section is part of the Seattle Marathon course and I’ve run it in training many times. There was good crowd support in this section. I still wasn’t too concerned about my pace but I knew that things were going pretty well. My legs were starting to get tight and tired but cardiovascularly I was still feeling strong. I could see I-90 in the distance and focused on getting there.

When we hit I-90 the half marathon and marathon courses split. As we were running through the tunnel the 3 hour marathon pacer went by me (they had run a few more miles than me at this point). Those guys were flying! I actually liked the tunnel mile because it was shaded and a little cooler. My Garmin lost its signal in the tunnel but I’m pretty sure the tenth mile marker was in the wrong place because there’s no way I ran 5:01 mile!

I should note that for some reason I decided not to take any walk breaks during this half. I did walk through a few water stations as I drank water but that was it. I really thought that if I slowed down my legs wouldn’t want to start back up.

Miles 11-13.1 (???, 7:34, 8:50, :50)

By the time I made it to mile 10 I was about ready for the race to be over. My legs were tired and things were starting to get tough. The eleventh mile was along the I-90 express lanes. It was exposed and hot and frankly seemed to last forever. Of course that might have been due to the misplaced mile 10 marker. I could see Qwest Field and knew I just had to make it there. There were some nice downhills in mile 11 and 12 coming down the off ramps. I have no idea how I pulled off a 7:34 mile 12. I was actually telling myself to keep it under control in this mile and prepare to turn it on for the last 1.1 miles. This was the first point in the race where I realized that I had the potential to set a new personal best.

The last mile was a physical and mental struggle. There were a couple of turns and the climb up to Aurora certainly slowed me down. I was pushing but my leg turnover wasn’t quite there. By the time we were coming off Aurora I was ready to be done. The finish was similar to the Race of the Cure finish so at least I’d seen it before. I saw the marathon 26 mile marker and new I was getting close. Eventually I passed the 13 mile marker. I looked at my watch and saw 1:50 on it. I knew a personal best was close so I poured on the best sprint to the finish I could muster.

After I crossed the start line I hit my watch and say 1:51:02. My actual chip time was 1:50:57 which is a new personal best by 1:02 over the 2007 Fall Classic.

Post Race

I got my medal and picked up some water, a banana and a granola bar. I downed my first 500 mL of water very quickly and then another 1L after that. The weather wasn’t that hot (maybe 15C) but it was sunny and I definitely needed the water. I picked up my drop back from the UPS truck and then met my Dad at the “C” sign in the family meeting area.

I’m beyond thrilled to have set a new personal best. I don’t have a half way time but I definitely ran a negative split (second half faster than the first). I can’t say enough about how well organized this race was. The Rock n Roll series of marathons is run by a corporation (Competitor Group, Inc) that I’m now referring to as the Starbucks of marathons. It’s all about branding, efficiency and consistency. I appreciate it when things run smoothly so I’d definitely consider doing another one of their races in the future.

Data

========================================
     Cumulative   Cumulative
Mile    Split        Time         Pace
========================================
 1     09:01.3     0:09:01.3     09:01.3
 2     08:26.1     0:17:27.4     08:43.7
 3     08:31.8     0:25:59.2     08:39.7
 4     08:22.4     0:34:21.6     08:35.4
 5     09:11.5     0:43:33.1     08:42.6
 6     08:20.7     0:51:53.8     08:39.0
 7     08:07.0     1:00:00.9     08:34.4
 8     08:36.8     1:08:37.7     08:34.7
 9     08:31.9     1:17:09.6     08:34.4
10     05:01.5     1:22:11.1     08:13.1
11     11:33.7     1:33:44.7     08:31.3
12     07:34.2     1:41:19.0     08:26.6
13     08:50.1     1:50:09.1     08:28.4
13.1   00:47.9     1:50:57.0     08:28.2
     1:50:57.0
========================================
Overall place: 1506/15541 (90th percentile)
Gender place: 600/11339 (94th percentile)
Division place: 125/2089 (94th percentile)

I’ve run twice this week and my legs felt surprisingly sore and tight. This is not a good sign before going into a half marathon. I’m hoping some extra yoga will loosen things up. I’m making really modest goals for this race because mentally that’s where I’m at right now. Not every race has to be a PB effort.

• Goal #1: Best case scenario <1:55:00 (8:47 min/mile)
• Goal #2: Keep it honest <2:00:00 (9:09 min/mile)
• Goal #3: Have fun and enjoy my last long run in Seattle

The weather forecast for Saturday looks perfect: 13C with 0% POP at start time. There are 17,500 people running the half and 7,500 running the full. This is by far the biggest race I’ve ever done and it’s also the first point to point race I’ve done. The start line is in Tukwila so I’ll be taking a shuttle from downtown Seattle to the start line on race morning. This race is being run my professionals though so I’m hopeful that race morning logistics will run smoothly. I wonder how many porta potties you need for 25,000 runners?

For the record, here are my last two weekly tables for this training cycle.

Week 10

Week 11

Week 8

Week 9

Thursday’s tempo run was tough but that’s nothing new. Looking back at it now the splits actually look pretty good but that second mile was a battle. I’m going to go ahead and blame my perceived lack luster performance on coming off a restless night’s sleep and low blood sugar (I run first thing in the morning and can only stomach a small banana before I hit the road).

I was so exhausted by the end of the week that after work on Friday I took a two hour nap before dinner. Then I slept for 8.5 hours that night. That seemed to do the trick because Saturday’s long run went pretty well. I chose a somewhat hilly route and just pounded it out. I even turned things on and did the last mile in 9:20! Sunday’s run was a true recovery run as I took things very easy and tried to work out some lingering soreness.

Tomorrow kicks off what I am referring to as Defence Week. Wish me luck!

On Thursday morning I passed the 500 miles year to date mileage mark. This is the earliest date that I have ever reached this mark (previously: 16/08/2006, 27/05/2007 and 10/06/2008).

There was some very cool news to come out this week about my goal race. Former marathon world record holder Paul Tergat of Kenya will be running the Rock n Roll Seattle Half Marathon. His PB is 59:17 so perhaps one of my race goals should be to run the race in less than double the about of time it takes Tergat! This is what I love about running. In what other sport do you get to compete in the same event as a former world record holder?!

Pre Race

I arrived at Husky Stadium at about 7:20 am. My wave was scheduled to start at 8:40 so I had lots of time to pick up my bib, relax and warm-up. There are three main events during the morning with about 10,000 total participants. First, the 4 mile walk went off and then the 1 mile kids fun run. Then it was time for the 8k road race.

I was a little frustrated with the total lack of appreciation for the 8k wave start. I know I should be more zen about this but it drives me crazy! There were three waves based on your anticipated finish time: green (<35 min), white (35-40 min) and red (>40 min). I chose the red wave when I registered because my 8k PB was 40:53. Well I saw red bibs go out in the middle of the green wave! Sure a few people could have been put in the wrong wave but not the numbers I saw. It was a mess. My theory is that that the threat of not beating the bridge caused people to head out early. There were also no pace signs at the start. I lined up in the second row of the red start because that’s where I figured I belonged. Less than half a mile into the race I was passing people who’d inappropriately started in the white wave. OK vent over.

I wasn’t sure how well the course would be marked so I left my Garmin to auto-lap each mile.

Mile 1: 7:29 I was clearly a bit too fired up at the start and I went out way too hard. I did not enjoy running over the metal grating on the Montlake bridge. I’m not afraid of heights it’s just that the surface is made for car tires not running shoes! As I mentioned, I was passing people within half a mile. Still I felt OK but I had a hard time settling into any sort of a zone.

Mile 2: 8:01 There was a lot of congestion in this mile but I was finally able to settle into my goal pace.

Mile 3: 8:18 This mile began with the climb up the University Bridge. I started paying for my fast start and seriously thought I might be in trouble. I kept rolling though because I know that while hills aren’t my strength as long as I stay out of the red zone I can recover pretty well. The thought did cross my mind that if this was a 5k I’d be nearly done!

Mile 4: 8:12 (a little long) I started feeling the heat in this mile. It was probably only about 20C but there wasn’t much shade on the course and this was my first hard and hot run of the year. I’m not heat acclimatized but apparently neither was anyone else because people were removing layers all around me. I actually took about a 20 second walk break at a water stop to take a drink. I’m not sure if I needed the water or not but it seemed like a good idea at the time.

Mile 5: 7:05 (a little short) I didn’t bother to look at my watch during the fourth or fifth mile so I had no idea how fast I was running. I just kept trying to focus on running at a comfortably hard pace. The section of the course behind the stadiums seemed to last forever because we took a round about way of getting into Husky stadium. I just kept thinking that I’d put too much effort in so far not to push all the way through the finish. There was one last short climb behind the football practice field and then I put on a kick into the stadium. I crossed the finish line, hit my watch and tried to stay vertical. I was shocked to see a finish time of 39:05 on my watch. Later I found that my official time was 39:03!

Post Race

I picked up a goody bag, some water and fruit and hung out in the stadium watching the rest of the racers finish. The picture above was taken about 15 minutes after I finished the race. I can only hope that the weather is this nice in four weeks when I’m back at the stadium for Commencement!

My official finish time of 39:03 (results) is a personal best by 1:50 over my 2006 Torchlight Run. That was my oldest standing PB which means that now the next in line to go down is my 10k PB of 54:02. I hope to destroy that some time in the fall.

There were some “technical difficulties” experienced with the timing chips. I think the mats at the start line failed meaning that they only have gun times for everyone. I’m not sure what that means for people who started in the wrong wave so I’m not going to report my percentile rankings. I am confident that my time is correct though.

The Rock n Roll Seattle half marathon is six weeks away. I have a recovery week and then four weeks of 30+ miles before the taper week. I’m feeling pretty optimistic about my current fitness. The half marathon starts at 7am which hopefully means that heat won’t be too much of an issue. Still I’m planning to get a few runs in during warmer temperatures just to be prepared.

• 5:00 am – Alarm 1 goes off, eat a bowl of oats soaked overnight in soy milk and drink 500 mL of water
• 5:10 am – Go back to bed
• 6:30 am – Alarm 2 goes off, eat banana, drink 250 mL of water, putter around and gear up for run
• 7:00 am – Depart on 11 mile run
• 9:00 am – Return from 11 mile run, stretch, shower and make second breakfast
• 9:30 am – Eat blueberry pancakes and start work day

The long run itself went OK. I chose a fairly flat out and back route but my legs still started feeling tight and tired after the turn around. I’ve been pretty good about getting my evening yoga sessions in so I hope that in the long run that will help with the tightness (especially as my mileage increases). The rest of the week’s runs were unremarkable. That’s not a bad thing, I just don’t have too much to say about them.

I’m feeling pretty good about tomorrow’s race but I’m not sure how speedy I’ll be. I’ve wanted to do Beat the Bridge for several years but for one reason or another it’s never worked out before. There’s a draw bridge at the 2 mile mark that goes up 20 minutes after the last wave (which will be my wave since it’s for anyone running >8:00 min/mile) starts. Here’s a picture. The goal, of course, is to beat the bridge! The race is replacing a tempo run in my training schedule so it’s by no means an “A” race for me. I just plan to get out there, push hard and see what happens. I still had to make a goal list though:

• Goal #1: The dream goal -  <40:00
• Goal #2: Set a new PB – <40:53
• Goal #3: Rock out the tempo run  – <43:00
• Goal #4: Beat the Bridge – First 2 miles in under 20 minutes by gun time

Check in tomorrow for a race report!

Ballard Locks Outdoor Art

When Saturday morning rolled around I woke to sunny skies and 10C conditions. I was pumped for my run. I decided to do an out and back route to the Ballard Locks (officially the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks). These locks mark the barrier between the salt water of Puget Sound and the fresh water of Lake Union and Lake Washington.  I wanted to tackle some hills so the route I picked took me up and over Phinney Ridge. I’ve posted the elevation chart from MapMyRun below. I think it adequately captures the magnitude of the climbs. The big climb on the way home reduced me to a 50/100 step walk/run sequence! The run was really great though. My legs only started protesting in the ninth and tenth miles but even then I was able to run through it without any real trouble.

Locks Run Elevation Chart

There are no average heart rate numbers in this week’s summary table because I left the heart rate monitor strap at home all week. I decided that ignorance was bliss and I just didn’t care to see my heart rate numbers for a while. So far it seems to be working!