Atlanta Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon: 24 NOV 2011

The alarm went off at 0500 on Thanksgiving morning in my Dad’s guest room. Back home in Colorado it would be 0300 and we had been in Atlanta for less than 12 hours. We left for the race around 0530. On the way, I ate a banana and a greek yogurt and drank more water. Traffic was impressive and thinking we might be late added to the stress right off the bat in the morning. Next race, I want to stay at a hotel in walking distance to make this easy.

By the time we finally reached Turner Field, it was so late that I didn’t really get to do a warm up of any significance. I found my pace group and attempted to keep my heart rate over 130 by jumping and bouncing in line. At 0730, the first corral was released and five minutes later my corral released. Starting with the pace group versus red lining trying to catch up to it like I did in Denver paid off immediately and I will add that to my race plan for all running races going forward.

Leaving Turner Field the pace team was right on schedule for miles 1 and 2 through Centennial Olympic Park. The pace definitely felt faster than I am used to and I was concentrated on trying to keep my heart rate closer to 170 than 180. Mile 1 was a 7:55 and Mile 2 was a 7:59.

Miles 3 and 4 were a bit faster at 7:44 and 7:53 respectively and had some uphill as we hit Atlantic Station. I was using a fuel belt this race and was happy that I could keep running through the aid stations and drink my PowerBar Perform every 15 minutes. My plan was to drink 20 oz over the course of the race, have one gel, and drink a cup of water near mile 8.

Mile 5 we ran at 7:58 and the hills sent my heart rate up to 179 and I started to crack a little bit. I began to think that my goal was a little aggressive and felt some cramping in my calves. I managed to stay with the group through mile 10 but my heart rate steadily increased at and above 180 bpm from mile marker 6 through the finish. I really cracked between mile 10 and 13 and actually walked 4 times for between 15 and 30 seconds on hills. I had bad side stitches towards the end.

I finished in 1:46:17 8 minutes and 17 seconds faster than my last race, but shorted my goal 1 minute and 17 seconds. Even though I missed the goal I was very happy with the run. I learned a lot. I definitely need to discuss my top end heart rate with my coach so I can prevent cracking and need to work on positive self-talk and pushing through pain. Had I not walked I would have hit a 1:45.

Race Info and Splits:
1:46:17 AVG 180 Peak 191 2493 Calories

Mile 1: 7:55 170

Mile 2: 7:59: 176

Mile 3: 7:43 178

Mile 4: 7:53 175

Mile 5: 7:58 179

Mile 6: 8:07 180

Mile 7: 8:02 180

Mile 8: 8: 09 184

Mile 9: 8: 09 183

Mile 10: 8:18 183

Mile 11: 8:28 184 Walked

Mile 12: 8:24 184 Walked

Mile 13: 9:01 185 Walked

Sustains:

1)      Keep up the Improved Nutrition

2)      Start at the front of the Pace Group

3)      Hydration Belt gave me a brief rest by allowing me to run slowly through aid stations

Improves

1)      Prep Better for Hills

2)      Establish a more accurate red line heart rate for runs so I don’t crack

3)      Use the pace group to push myself but make sure I run my own race when I start feeling over exerted.