We had a great time with the pasta dinner at Guido's
and with some of the runners near the starting line right before the race:
My goal time was 1:59, just over a 9-minute-mile pace, which would be 8 minutes faster than my previous best of 2:07 at the Memphis half marathon in December. They place you in the start based on your anticipated finish time in corrals of several hundred runners. I was in corral 7, out of 30+ corrals, by far the closest I'd ever been to the start line at a major race. One thing I noticed right off the bat being around faster runners is that they talk a great deal less. When I've run races in that 11-12 minute miler area, I usually end up in eight to ten conversations with the strangers I end up running beside. Sub-ten minute runners are a completely different animal. At mile 2, I had a brief conversation with a man who was waiting on his slower runners to acclimate to the higher pace. At somewhere around mile 8 I briefly talked with a woman who said she'd signed up for the full marathon but had now decided 'just' to do the half. That's it.
I've got an old GPS watch, and was able to keep track of my pace and mile splits. Miles 4-9 are run down Music Row and Belmont Blvd, a college and residential street, which is a brilliant move by the race organizers. The route is lined with trees, spectators and music, which all help you keep going. As the race got longer, my pace got a bit slower. At the end of Music Row at mile 9.5, the 2:00 pace runner passed me. Most races have pacers- a runner who has trained to run at an exact pace throughout a race so that other runners can follow them in order to hit that pace. They even carry a small '2:00' banner on a stick so you can still follow them in the crowd. I knew if I didn't keep up with the 2:00 pacer, I'd never break 2 hours. But then the heat set in. I was able to keep up with him until the 10.5 water station, and then lost him for good. As good as the middle miles were, mile 12 was bad. Its straight uphill, in full sun, after you've run 11 miles. Luckily the last half mile across the river and around the stadium was mostly downhill, and I think I was able to have a decent finish. I ended up running a 2:09, two minutes off my best time ever, and I did keep my goal pace up for 10 miles. I guess I just need to train a little better and longer next time.
If you ever decide to do a race, I would recommend this one. It has a big expo, most of the race course is very pretty, there are a ton of bands, and I'm told heat is not always a factor like it was this year. When I got in my car it was 83, but I think it started out in the 60s.
This was also a cool opportunity for me to help raise funds to fight AIDs and help build wells in Zambia and southern Africa. Thanks again to all those who helped!
