St. Petersburg Halloween Half Marathon Race Report
Before: Well, I didn't know what to expect a couple weeks out from the marathon, but the legs just weren't there. Did taper a bit, but had a good, hard workout on Tuesday which couldn't have helped. The wind was 8-10+mph throughout, which I suppose should be expected on an unsheltered island. Humidity was average for Florida. Temperatures were favorable, ~72 degrees.
Miles 1-2 Took it out shooting for 5:35-5:40 pace for the entirety. Mile one I was worried. I felt like I lacked strength in my legs. Usually, I gear up pretty well for a race and don't notice anything body-wise in the beginning other than excitement. Not today I thought... Our lead group seemed to be five: 4 regular faces (Sean, Lee, Chris M, and myself) and 1 new face (Anthony, who I've trained with on easy runs the last couple months). I wanted to just stick to the pace as I was interested to see if I could PR, so I dictated the pace for a lot of it and mostly led.
Miles 3-10: The group dropped to Anthony, Chris, and I. From here all the way to the turnaround I was leading (shooting at about 5:40s or faster) or Anthony would take over (and slow us down to about 5:50). I didn't enjoy the slowing, but I let it happen, and then try to compensate with 5:35 pace which as it turns out was a bad idea. I did sincerely appreciate someone trading off the lead though and sharing the responsibility of blocking the wind. Both were still on my heels entering the final stretch.
Mile 11: Wheels fell off. I wasn't gassed, I was just... tired. I told myself to speed up, and I just wouldn't. It was an odd feeling. I got passed emphatically here by Anthony and Chris. I did not like that, but I sincerely just couldn't keep up. They flew away.
Mile 12: Well, somehow, more wheels fell off the vehicular device. I didn't know the car I was driving had so many wheels. Chris and Anthony were already out of reach.
Mile 13: I think the axle broke here at this point. Rear view mirror shattered. The hood of the car flew up to catch the wind. You know the deal. I looked at my watch and almost laughed a bit. I was trying hard to pick up that pace. There was still no sign of 4th place behind me, which didn't help my slowing.
Finish: Ugly. Managed to regain some form and dignity. All of a sudden, my legs knew how to move fast again. Thank you fast twitch muscles at the end.
1 Chris 1 Overall 1:15:00.3 5:44/M
2 Anthony 2 Overall 1:15:36.5 5:46/M
3 Me 3 Overall 1:16:32.2 5:51/M
4 Sean 4 Overall 1:18:43.1 6:01/M
5 Lee 5 Overall 1:18:55.1 6:01/M
Splits: 5:40, 5:39, 5:43, 5:36, 5:36, 5:49, 5:53, 5:50, 5:47, 5:44, 5:58 (ouch), 6:24 (ouch), 6:54 (6:07 pace- ouch)
Takeaways: I will use this as motivation. I can do better. Still had fun and enjoyed hanging with the group afterward.
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