Broad Street Race Recap Part Deux:
Right back at you
@Novatrix ! And congrats on the huge pr! So great. I actually enjoyed the weather, didn't mind a little drizzle and the overcast sky helped keep me comfy, not too hot.
I couldn't describe the race course better than above. I can't decide whether I liked the Navy Yard finish better from previous years, or running past the sports arenas like the Linc & Citizens Bank Stadium like this time. Both are cool in their own way.
I was *not* giving it my all this race. I have the Philly Marathon in 6 weeks, and had a 9 mile marathon pace tempo run on the schedule for today, so was just making this a supported training run. The real goal today was a dress rehearsal for the marathon, my A race. I struggle to execute a pre-race and in-race nutrition plan, often because I don't want to get up early enough to eat the right things at the right time and have time to digest, hydrate, etc. Also I wanted to bust out my Hoka Carbon X's I've been hoarding for the marathon, and try them out today.
I have to say it was a success in this regard. I did NOT want to get up early like I was supposed to, but I was bound and determined to take my breakfast seriously. I did what I should, and felt great during the race. I used a Maurten gel at mile 4 like I would in the marathon, and I tried out some peanut butter filled pretzel nuggets at like mile 8. I'm not sold on the pretzels yet. I wasn't hungry enough for them at that time. I might take some with me for the marathon, but use them later in the race and instead take another gel at mile 8. The shoes were great, very comfy. I'll wear them for my next 2 tempo runs which will leave me with about 33 miles on them for the marathon start.
I was supposed to stick to a 9:30-9:40/mile pace (adjusting for T+D) and I finished in
1:36:48. So a pretty good job on pacing, if I do say so myself! That's including 2 short breaks for fueling and starting with a warmup mile (ok, maybe that warmup mile wasn't as slow as it should be). Surprisingly, this was a
7 second PR since my 10-miler this past May, where I was trying my hardest! So that was pretty cool, if unexpected. Call me The Squeaker because I'm pretty sure the past 3 times I've PR'ed or set a time goal and made it, I have made it but with less than 10 seconds to spare. Not 10 seconds per mile pace, 10 seconds total race time!
The best part about today was just how much fun it was to race in a city again. I really just love city races. The energy can't be beat. I can't wait to take a victory lap for my training at the marathon in 6 weeks.