Sunday morning driving to the race, my stomach was in knots. That's not really unusual before a race or any other big event I've been preparing for. But, I wasn't really targetting this race. In fact, I've done little training, and am trying a new approach this spring. I'm trying to race myself into shape by doing a race just about every weekend, and hoping the last couple will be pretty good.
Since Sunday's Great Western half marathon fell pretty early in that plan, I really had no reason to be keyed up. When my training partner, Tom, talked about his strategy before the race, I thought running 7:30 pace for a finishing time of 1:38:15 sounded good for him. He's targeting the Grand Rapids 25k in two weeks. But I was just going to take it easy and try to break 1:40. But that nagging feeling in my stomach suggested perhaps my body was ready to go faster, even if my head wasn't engaged.
The weather certainly was about perfect. It was cool, sunny, and a little breezy, with the wind at our backs for the second half of the race. And it was a small field, with fewer than 1000 runners on a nice trail. I was definitely looking forward to the run, even if I had no plan to try to go fast.
Then the starting gun went off, and Tom and I ran together for the first mile, which, to my surprise, was exactly 7:30. The surprises continued. With no real plan, I just ran as my body felt. And it felt like running a little faster. So I started running about 7:20 pace for a few miles.
Because this was an 'out and back' course, I was able to see the leaders as they went by after they turned, which was fun. And after I turned at the 6.5 mile mark, I was able to see Tom and offer some encouragement. He was maybe a minute behind me. So I kept on running as I felt, and kept up the 7:20-7:30 pace. As I approached ten miles, I started to think about finishing times, and realized that I was going to be under 1:15 at 10 (7:30/pace), one of the few benchmark times I could figure with my rudimentary math on the run.
I hit 10 in 1:14:20, but then I started to feel it. By mile 12, I was starting to slow considerably. And by 12 1/2, the finish was in sight, but I had nothing extra to give. It took all I had to get accross the line. I heard them announce my name, and moments later I heard them say Tom's name. While I struggled, Tom had a strong kick and almost caught me by the finish. I managed to cross the line in 1:38:09, and was thrilled. And it was funny that
we basically finished together, though we really didn't run the race together.
I tried to register for the Great Western half marathon several years ago, but was too late. The race was sold out. Now I understand why. It's a great experience! You can find results at this link: http://www.foxrivertrailrunners.org/.
In order to run Great Western I had to skip out on several other great races going on this weekend. One of the best, was the Fleet Feet Ravenswook 5k. They also enjoyed a great day, and some fast times. Congrats to James Akita on a big win. Here are results for that race: http://results.active.com/pages/displayNonGru.jsp?orgID=234623&rsID=109094.
So now I have the Chicago Lakefront path portion of my racing schedule for the next several weeks. The next four races I'm running will all be over the largely the same route on the south part of the path.
Next weekend is the Cinco de Miler, which is a new five mile race that finishes by Soldier Field. It is nearly sold out, but here is the link: http://www.cincodemiler.com/register/
In two weeks is the Magellan spring half marathon, which I've also been interested to try. The info is below.
Date: Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 7am
Location: The Park at Lakeshore East, Chicago
Description:
The Third Annual Magellan Chicago Spring Half Marathon and 10K races help kick off Chicago’s race season. Starting just steps away from Chicago’s Lake Michigan waterfront alongside the Chicago River, the race course takes runners south along the scenic lakefront path with Chicago Street Musicians entertaining racers along the course. The one loop half marathon and 10K courses continue through the city’s historic museum campus, alongside Soldier Field, finishing up at The Park at Lakeshore East, where runners celebrate their achievements at a post-race picnic with live music.
The race start time for the Half Marathon is 7am and the 10K starts at 7:30am (or 30 minutes after the half-marathoners clear).
Organizers: The Magellan Chicago Spring Half Marathon is a Life Time Athletic and Endurance event.
Register: www.chicagospringhalf.com
The Soldier Field 10 miler (http://www.soldierfield10.com/htm/registration.html) and the 13.1 half marathon (http://www.131marathon.com/13_1_Chicago//?gclid=CJWc9eDuyagCFcW8KgodhFdpuw) round out my racing schedule through early June. It's gonna be busy, but fun. Especially if I can keep 'racing into shape'.
See you on the roads.....
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