The Half, November 6, 2005
Tim
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The Half, at Whiterock Lake, Dallas, Texas, November 6, 2005.
Bib, 2399. Sunday Nov. 6, race start at 8:00 AM, Dallas, Texas, 1/2 Marathon around Whiterock Lake, shares some of the same course as the Whiterock Marathon. Starting temp: I am not sure, 50's or so, daytime high was hi 70's, clear skies, rather windy during the second half.
Basically it was a beautiful day to run.
I went to a Doobie Brothers concert the night before, it was great, hit the sack and went to sleep about 11:30 PM, up at 4:00 AM, on the highway for a 100 mile drive to Dallas at 4:51 AM.
Arrived about 6:40 AM......my number 1 priority was to find the porta potty fast, really needed it, sorry...2 more porta potty stops a brief warm up and some stretching and I am off to the starting line ....with 15 minutes to spare...
History:
Last year I ran the race after a PR 2 weeks prior of 1:41:26. My goal was to run MP at about 8min/mile. I found myself struggling to slow down the pace. Finished at about 1:43:13 (7:52 pace), even ran a 20 miler the Thursday prior to the race.
This year I ran a poor 1/2, 1:45:58 (8:05 pace). This years plan was to try and race "The Half"
I didn't pick a race pace, just thought I would try tempo pace of 7:30 and see where it takes me. There was no way I was going to run that pace but I took a shot.
Here are my splits.
Mile 1 - 7:25 Flat
Mile 2 - 7:25 Flat
Mile 3 - 7:35 Hills
Mile 4 - 7:48 Hills
Mile 5 - 7:39 Hills
Mile 6 - 7:52 Hills
Mile 7 - 7:43 Hills
Mile 8 - 7:59 Hills
Mile 9 - 7:58 Lake path, windy
Mile 10 - 8:01 Lake path, windy
Mile 11 - 8:05 Lake path, windy
Mile 12 - 8:17 Lake path, windy
Mile 13 - 8:05 Lake path, windy
Mile 13.1 - 48 seconds....finally the end is in sight.
Final Chip time 1:42:48,
364 out of 3131 overall
20th out of 146 in the Male 50-54 age group.
It was a tough mental challenge at Mile 12 and the 8:17 reflects it
With 2.1 to go I had to really concentrate in order to not loose any more time. It was hard as I watched so many runners pass me. They ran a much smarter race.
The course was tougher than I recalled from last year. It is a hilly which makes it very challenging.
The air stayed cool, so I feel like the heat did not bother me.
My finish time was better than last year, but remember as I previously stated, I didn't race last year and I ran a 20 miler just a few days before last years race. There is no way I would have attempted that this year, the 20 miler would have compromised my race performance.
I am pleased that I "came back" after a poor performance a few weeks ago, but my main disappointment (hold that thought) is that I am not at the same level as last year.
This years plan was to attempt a BQ. Sunday’s race reaffirms that my VDOT has dropped from a 44.5 to a 43.5 which in affect lowers my potential MP from a range of 7:57-8:06 to 8:06-8:25. So I am on the hairy edge for a 3:35 Marathon.
When all is said and done, I am not as bad off as I thought but not on target for my goals.
Next test is the Whiterock Half Marathon with the hopes of an improvement before my final commitment to the Chevron Houston Marathon, Jan. 15, 2006.
With all this in mind, I still had a blast; I have learned to always enjoy my races in one way or another. The Cross Country Club of Dallas puts on a great event that I highly recommend. It was a special pleasure to know that after such a grueling race that I had a friend waiting at the finish line ready to present me with my Finishers Metal (which by the way is the best ½ finisher metal I have seen). Thanks Ribs for awarding my metal, it was really neat to meet you in person and I looked forward to our meeting during the entire race and I am sure it helped me through mile 12; I am also looking forward to Whiterock where we may have more time to talk.
Now, remember I suggested that you “hold that thought”? The biggest disappointment was that The Cross Country Club of Dallas did not have the cookies that were provided last year. I have been looking forward to them all year long, I though about them during the entire race, I ran to the food tent, looked everywhere for the cookies to my total dismay. So there I sat with 2 bananas, water, and an egg wrap, talking to myself, not about my race, but the missing cookies. Spareribs, you gotta fix it and bring the cookies back.
It was a tough mental challenge at Mile 12 and the 8:17 reflects it
With 2.1 to go I had to really concentrate in order to not loose any more time. It was hard as I watched so many runners pass me. They ran a much smarter race.
The course was tougher than I recalled from last year. It is a hilly which makes it very challenging.
The air stayed cool, so I feel like the heat did not bother me.
My finish time was better than last year, but remember as I previously stated, I didn't race last year and I ran a 20 miler just a few days before last years race. There is no way I would have attempted that this year, the 20 miler would have compromised my race performance.
I am pleased that I "came back" after a poor performance a few weeks ago, but my main disappointment (hold that thought) is that I am not at the same level as last year.
This years plan was to attempt a BQ. Sunday’s race reaffirms that my VDOT has dropped from a 44.5 to a 43.5 which in affect lowers my potential MP from a range of 7:57-8:06 to 8:06-8:25. So I am on the hairy edge for a 3:35 Marathon.
When all is said and done, I am not as bad off as I thought but not on target for my goals.
Next test is the Whiterock Half Marathon with the hopes of an improvement before my final commitment to the Chevron Houston Marathon, Jan. 15, 2006.
With all this in mind, I still had a blast; I have learned to always enjoy my races in one way or another. The Cross Country Club of Dallas puts on a great event that I highly recommend. It was a special pleasure to know that after such a grueling race that I had a friend waiting at the finish line ready to present me with my Finishers Metal (which by the way is the best ½ finisher metal I have seen). Thanks Ribs for awarding my metal, it was really neat to meet you in person and I looked forward to our meeting during the entire race and I am sure it helped me through mile 12; I am also looking forward to Whiterock where we may have more time to talk.
Now, remember I suggested that you “hold that thought”? The biggest disappointment was that The Cross Country Club of Dallas did not have the cookies that were provided last year. I have been looking forward to them all year long, I though about them during the entire race, I ran to the food tent, looked everywhere for the cookies to my total dismay. So there I sat with 2 bananas, water, and an egg wrap, talking to myself, not about my race, but the missing cookies. Spareribs, you gotta fix it and bring the cookies back.
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