The Running Thread - 2019

[JulieODC]

A huge shout out to 20 year old American, Dan Romanchuk, who won the Men's Elite Wheelchair race in London today. He also won Boston.....and New York....and Chicago!!!! Wow, what an athlete.

So amazing!!

 

[YawningDodo]

Fell off the board for a while here, probably not going to even try to catch up but uh...I'm scheduled for a 3 mile road race this afternoon and this area is under a blizzard warning today. There's already several inches of snow on the ground and it's still snowing...sideways. I can hear the wind beating against the house. Already tried to reach the race organizers by phone, but the phone line goes to someone's regular office in parks & rec and no one's answering. No new info on the race website, they don't have a FB page, and the latest info I can find is a local news article from yesterday saying it would go on "no matter what the weather brings"...when they were thinking it might just be a bit of snow.

If the race is on I'm seriously thinking of running it for the bragging rights but at the same time this seems like an obvious "uh no, don't run in a blizzard" type of thing (I'd definitely skip if I were going out of town for it, but it's only a few miles from home). I still need to pick up my packet so I might just...go do that? And talk to the organizers there?? I have cold weather gear and I've run in a lot colder temperatures, but I've never run in this kind of wind and wet before.

 

[camaker]

Fell off the board for a while here, probably not going to even try to catch up but uh...I'm scheduled for a 3 mile road race this afternoon and this area is under a blizzard warning today. There's already several inches of snow on the ground and it's still snowing...sideways. I can hear the wind beating against the house. Already tried to reach the race organizers by phone, but the phone line goes to someone's regular office in parks & rec and no one's answering. No new info on the race website, they don't have a FB page, and the latest info I can find is a local news article from yesterday saying it would go on "no matter what the weather brings"...when they were thinking it might just be a bit of snow.

If the race is on I'm seriously thinking of running it for the bragging rights but at the same time this seems like an obvious "uh no, don't run in a blizzard" type of thing (I'd definitely skip if I were going out of town for it, but it's only a few miles from home). I still need to pick up my packet so I might just...go do that? And talk to the organizers there?? I have cold weather gear and I've run in a lot colder temperatures, but I've never run in this kind of wind and wet before.

Go for it! It’s just 3 miles and then think of the stories you’ll have to tell about when you raced in a blizzard!

 

[cburnett11]

Saturday Race Report: I ran the Kentucky Derby Festival miniMarathon (half) yesterday. The weather was ideal, even if there was more sun than my liking. There were over 8,000 finishers in the half and another 1,500 in the full. Also there were some relay teams, including one team that had Kathrine Switzer run with them. Which was cool.

I started with the 1:45 pace group. My previous best in a half was last year at this same race when I finished in 1:46:47. My training has gone well in 2019 and I already set new marks this year in the 5k, 10k, and 10 mile distances. So I was optimistic. My goal was to be under 1:44, but I was still not sold on starting with 1:45 because I like to start really slow for a couple miles.

I had a few friends join with me in the 1:45 group, so that was nice. Some of them had just run Boston and Garmin marathons 2 weeks ago, so it was a mix of them running easy or just seeing what they had left. I had another friend (ended up being personal pacer) surprise me right after the mile 4 marker by waiting and joining me. He was shooting for 1:23 or something, but had some pains. So he was waiting for me. It was great because he chatted me up through the end of the race. These were easy miles for him and his company made the rest of the race fly by.

I had one guy in my group that I was sorta racing. We train together and have a very friendly “rivalry”. He, my personal pacing friend, and me got a bit ahead of the 1:45 group. I had planned to pass/leave the rival friend at the end. We basically were with each other the whole race. He did pull ahead of me some in miles 8-11... but we were reeling him in. I was really pushing and I know he was too. My plan was to pass him in the last mile. However I didn’t quite have it in me. I think miles 11 and 12 were just too hard on me. Those were my fastest and I couldn’t sustain in mile 13. He beat me by 6 seconds... I had nothing left (or couldn’t comprehend being any more uncomfortable) during the last 400-800 meters. At any rate it was a great day and I took 4:37 off my best by finishing in 1:42:10. Me and my rival hugged afterwards and both said how much better we ran because of each other. My personal pacer friend didn’t hurt either, lol.

Now it’s on to more base training. I have one more PR I’m shooting for this year. I’m signed up for the Indy Monumental Marathon in November in hopes to BQ for 2021. I’ve got a bit of work to do, but I’m cautiously optimistic that I’m on the right track.

 

[kirstie101]

@LSUlakes can you add a race for me?

October 2019:

20- Kirstie101- Folsom Blues Breakout Half (NG / N/A)

Treating this one as a training run. Registered because my cousins hubby was in a motorcycle accident - head injury, coma for 3 weeks - he’s in PT now and walking with little assistance - a bunch of us registered, including him, as a goal for him to aim for.

 

[YawningDodo]

Go for it! It’s just 3 miles and then think of the stories you’ll have to tell about when you raced in a blizzard!

I just got back from packet pickup, and I'm going to go for it! They've already started blocking streets for it, so as far as the race organizers are concerned it's clearly a go. I forgot what a pain parking is on race day, though (even without reduced visibility), so I'll have to set out early to be sure I can get parked and get to the start on time.

It's...well, it's pretty bad out there, but I'm talking myself into feeling like it's not that bad. It's 25*F, which is a good 40* warmer than my coldest winter run, and the snow isn't too deep. Little concerned my feet will get wet, but like you say it's only 3 miles and I think I can manage. Found my ski goggles after a bit of frantic digging; I realized while walking from my car to packet pickup that I was going to have a hard time keeping my eyes open without them whenever I was faced into the wind.

But yeah, seriously, bragging rights. I don't expect to make good time, but I expect to have a good time, you know?

 

[YawningDodo]

Race Recap:
40th Annual Ice Breaker 3 Mile Road Race
​

Today's race was amazing. As noted above I had seriously considered bowing out when I woke up to a blizzard, but decided to see it through. The snow had mostly stopped by the time the race began at 2:00 in the afternoon, but the wind was still out in full force--just intermittent strong gusts here and there on the first and last miles, which are sheltered by buildings and hills, but the middle stretch on the river's edge was windy enough to push me sideways--fortunately it was a crosswind most of the way, so I wasn't running directly against it like I did on a recent training run. I was slow getting out of the building after they wound up the cardio warmup (they usually do it at the starting line, but this year held all of the pre-race stuff inside the Civic Center for obvious reasons), so by the time I reached the start line across the street the race had already begun, but being at the tail end was alright since I was able to spend the entire race steadily passing one person after another. I'm still on intervals that have me walking more than I run, but I'm good at the slow and steady gig.

Mile 1 was easy apart from some issues with gear; I'd worn a raincoat as my outermost layer and needed to shed it almost immediately because I was getting overheated. Mile 2, as mentioned, was rough--I'm accustomed to slowly increasing my pace over the course, but my second mile came out slower than the first. I was pretty dismayed at that and decided to double down on mile 3; there was a point maybe half a mile from the finish at which I thought I'd pushed too hard, but judged that I could power through. I wasn't looking at my watch except at the mile markers, so I didn't realize until I had finished the race that I'd pushed so hard at the end that I beat my personal record for fastest mile by at least half a minute! I got back to the Civic Center just as they were starting the 1 mile fun run, and I wished I had signed up for it and could keep going! Once I slowed down for a couple minutes and grabbed my bag lunch (included in the registration fee), though, I definitely felt the adrenaline letdown.

The numbers:
Time: 45:53
Overall pace: 15:12
New record for fastest mile: 14:21
Overall: 286th of 345
Female 30-34: 17 of 20
(hey, I wasn't last!!)

​

 

[Dopey 2020]

Congrats on a new mile PR, and on a having some great memories and a story to tell forever

 

[canglim52]

(or couldn’t comprehend being any more uncomfortable)

Congrats on a killer race! Love this quote, great way of looking at it. You should remember it when you got a hard interval you need to complete!

 

[flav]

Marathon des Érables 5k race recap

In short: A well organized, very humid race as a coach-parent.

Long story:
This was DD (11 y.o.) race. DH and I were the coaches/parents/supporters . Last year, it was her first race ever and she keeps fond memories of it and of her bunny-pacer!

That series of race is really well organized and is of the all inclusive type, especially when registering early: Long sleeve tech shirt, official time, medals, photos and lunch. This particular even has all the distances 1k, 5k, 5k walk, 10k, 15k, 30k, half and full marathon. With a total of roughly 2000 runners.

Since last week, many homes in our area are flooded and we knew Saturday was going to bring more rain. It delivered. So I prepared for it and packed ponchos, umbrellas and change of clothes. We figure, there is nothing else to do so let’s make the best of it. We drove to the country side and stayed somewhat warm and dry for two hours since the 5k was one of the later start.

The rain calmed down so we did our warmup as planned to avoid side-stitches. Animation at the start was good, we began with a smile. DD had announced a conservative goal of less than 33 minutes since she only had a month to train (too icy before). So she wanted to roughly follow the 30 minutes pacer. She declined run/walk intervals. So, she started the race very slowly. Then started complaining about her feet being cold. We kept telling her it was for fun, we could stop/slow down/walk. Nope. She was now whimpering. We reminded her to breathe. DH was mouthing that this was his last race... We just didn’t know what to say or do as parents or coaches to make the experience less miserable.

As we came towards the last kilometre, DD was now crying and said « we will never catch our bunny again. » I said, « if this is what you really want, now is the time to try, it will be too late after the race. » That, combined with DH earlier comment « of course we are not expecting you to run under 30 minutes, you are not trained for it, » is what made it! She sprinted, had to walk a few seconds, saw the bunny, caught-up to him, past him and sprinted the end. Her final time was 29:14. And she repeated me « do not pass me! » so mine is 29:15.

We gathered our gorgeous medal and had a quick bite before boarding the bus. The park was a sea of mud but the organizers had done the best they could.

DD impressions on the race: « It was great, it felt like it lasted five minutes!»

Me: « It felt like you complained for a full half hour.»

DH: « We had a great time. It was tough for a 11y.o. with the rain and cold. She is tougher than she sounds. »

Conclusion: « We will all be back next year! »

 

[JulieODC]

Portland 10 Miler Race Report

Yesterday I ran the Portland 10 Miler in Maine. It was the first of 3 in a series - next up is Newport, RI in June and Stowe, VT in November.

I didn’t train to race this, just to finish happy. Nailed that goal - felt great, perfect weather (sunny, light breeze, 50), beautiful coastal course, and well organized/ supported. Bonus - excellent food to fuel with (including my favorite lobster roll in the world).

Course was mostly flat, with a few rollers and one big hill. Not much crowd support, but 4 water stops, and free beer at the end. This was also the longest I’ve run continuously. I walked briefly at the water stations, but otherwise just ran. I like my Galloway intervals - but this felt surprisingly good! Felt like I could have kept going. I’m hoping to “race” Newport for my POT in June, so this was a nice training race.

It was also the first time I’ve ever run a race with a friend the whole way. I’m an introvert who sometimes has mixed feelings about running with others. But, this was perfect - we didn’t talk, just ran, it really felt like we fed off each other’s energy. Plus, it always feels good to set an example for our girls (1st graders and 4 year olds).

Anyone in the northeast, this race is highly recommended!

 

[Waiting2goback]

I got back from Disney about ten days ago but then had a busy week with the kids so I have been pretty tired, which is why I have been absent. It was a good trip, VERY busy, but good overall.

I am not sure I will try and catch up on the past couple of weeks, I will see what I have for free time this week.

 

[Waiting2goback]

 

[AntimonyER]

Freedom Run 5K Race Report

So added this race last week because since I ran with my daughter at the one two weeks ago, I wanted to run a 5K for time before the end of the season. Plus my daughter enjoyed the last one so much, she wanted to do another now that she knew what to expect (and wasn't handicapped with the remnants of the flu).

This is just a small local race benefiting the Georgia Southern Army ROTC program. In addition to the 5K, they also host a 10K and 5K ruck race. It is run on the college campus, starting at the recreation complex, running around the football stadium and then into the heart of campus, then returning to the start. Some slight inclines around the stadium, but mostly flat.

We won the weather jackpot, it was 55 and no humidity with only a light breeze and beautiful blue skies at race start, absolutely perfect running weather.

At the start I set my daughter up next to a couple other kids that were running, since she would be running it by herself and made sure she was good to go, before heading to the front of the pack. A few encouraging words from the emcee, and off we went. The first half mile was running to the stadium, and was slightly uphill the whole way. Thankfully, after rounding the stadium the course returns the way it came, so second half mile was downhill. Finished the first mile at 6:26, and maintaining contact with the front runners. The second mile runs along a tree-lined road until it gets to the heart of campus, then actually turns onto the central walking path to the "downtown" of campus. Being shortly after 8am on a saturday, it's pretty much deserted other than the course workers. Finished the second mile at 6:35, right before the turn around to head back to the finish. I caught a glimpse of my daughter just as I was hitting the end of the walking path, she was just starting the path, but I thought she was doing pretty good to be where she was, and looked to be running without issue, so with that worry gone, I focused on the end of my race. I was pretty tired by this point, but figured I would save a little bit for the last 1/10th. Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance, because for my 3rd "5K" in a row, it ended up being a ~3 mile course. I picked it up to the finish when I realized it was short, and finished with an official time of 19:31.

After catching my breath and getting some water, I started heading back up the course to watch for my daughter. I didn't have to wait very long, as she was having a great race, and finished with an official time of 27:24, over 5 minutes faster than her flu hampered, warm and humid first race 2 weeks ago (that was also only a 3 mile course, so comparable).

In the end, even though I didn't get an official 5K time, extrapolating my time to a full 5K yields an estimated finish time of 20:19, so I definitely would have beat my goal for the race and set a new PR. I finished 1st in my age group and 5th overall, behind 4 teenagers. My daughter finished 2nd in her age group, and was 7th overall female! So proud of her!

 

[flav]

Portland 10 Miler Race Report

Yesterday I ran the Portland 10 Miler in Maine. It was the first of 3 in a series - next up is Newport, RI in June and Stowe, VT in November.

I didn’t train to race this, just to finish happy. Nailed that goal - felt great, perfect weather (sunny, light breeze, 50), beautiful coastal course, and well organized/ supported. Bonus - excellent food to fuel with (including my favorite lobster roll in the world).

Course was mostly flat, with a few rollers and one big hill. Not much crowd support, but 4 water stops, and free beer at the end. This was also the longest I’ve run continuously. I walked briefly at the water stations, but otherwise just ran. I like my Galloway intervals - but this felt surprisingly good! Felt like I could have kept going. I’m hoping to “race” Newport for my POT in June, so this was a nice training race.

It was also the first time I’ve ever run a race with a friend the whole way. I’m an introvert who sometimes has mixed feelings about running with others. But, this was perfect - we didn’t talk, just ran, it really felt like we fed off each other’s energy. Plus, it always feels good to set an example for our girls (1st graders and 4 year olds).

Anyone in the northeast, this race is highly recommended!

I am adding this series to my « when I am retired » bucket list.

 

[flav]

At the start I set my daughter up next to a couple other kids that were running, since she would be running it by herself and made sure she was good to go, before heading to the front of the pack.

I reserve the right to do the same with my DD next year... DH and her could run her race and I would attempt a placement. Congratulations to both of you!

 

[AntimonyER]

I reserve the right to do the same with my DD next year... DH and her could run her race and I would attempt a placement. Congratulations to both of you!

Yeah I was a little nervous about it, but she assured me she was ok with running alone, and she proved it. In fact I think she did better alone than with me with her, she gets worked up on whether she is disappointing me or not, and ends up panicking nearly every time if we are doing anything other than a relaxed, easy, no goal run, no matter how much I tell her she is doing great, and its ok, etc.

 

[derekleigh]

Race The Runways (in Brunswick, Maine) has always been a favorite of mine since I first ran the half in 2013. Since then I've only missed one year, but have run the half and the 14.1 Airport Challenge during those years. Three years ago they added a 10K option, but I've always loved the have. However my wife was scheduled to run the 10K in it's inaugural year but wasn't able to due to scheduling. The great people that run the event allowed one of us to transfer the 10K slot to the next year (2018), which I ended up running. After failing to make my Age Group podium at last year’s Race the Runways by 12 seconds, I wanted to take another swing in 2019. This year's results were better:

10K Time - 49:03.2
Overall - 12th (out of 123)
Age Group - 2nd (out of 10)





If anyone has a chance to run this event, you should. Great staff, great shirts, flat courses (you actually get to run on the tarmac for about 1 mile for the 5K and 10K, 5-6 for the half), the medal for the half is awesome, the 10K medal (shown above) is smaller, and they have a distance for everyone (1-mile, 5K, 10K, Half, & 14.1 Challenge).

 

[LSUlakes]

QOTD: Long runs on the weekend. Do you prefer to run them on Saturday or Sunday? Why?

ATTQOTD: I prefer Saturday mornings for a few reasons. Saturdays are usually a night we stay up a little later or have some function going on so its easier to just get the run in be able to not worry about a Sunday run. Also, Sunday morning we go to church and if I went out for a long run I would be cutting in close on getting there on time and well theres also leg cramps while kneeling that could be a issue.

 

[steph0808]

Sunday mornings. My DH hunts a lot, so Saturday mornings are his time to do that. Also, my in-laws come to play with the kids on Sunday mornings, so I feel like I'm missed less during my long run hours because there are 3 adults hanging out with the kids.