New Bedford Half RR

We had 11 runners from GNRC  performing today.   Here are most of us pre-race.

And Post Race:

The wind was 20 mph which made it really hard to figure out how to dress without over dressing or under dressing. Gloves were a must as was a headband but no jacket required. I was fine for the first mile then soon felt overdressed with just a thin base and moderate half zip.  After pondering should I or Shouldn't I remove my shirt I decided to suck it up. There just isn't much you can do when your number is securely fastened in 4 places to your outer shirt. Erin, however, through away one of her shirts to the side of the road around mile 6 never to see her shirt again. I wonder if she pinned her number to her inside shirt. Duh!

I had at least 3 goals for this race.

Goal #1 - PR by running under 1:33:25.  Why?  So I can pat myself on the back and say what a good runner you are and although you are almost 50 you are still effing fast and capable of a PR. aka - My best days are not necessarily over.

Goal #2 - Run under 1:34.  Why?  Because when I run in the 1:33 range I am close to a PR and that indicates that I'm in good running shape for the upcoming season which confirms that all of my training is working. Thanks to my coach Carrie..

Goal #3 - Feel good about my effort regardless of my time.  Why? Because when I know I have put forth a very hard effort, the time it took for said effort becomes less meaningful. I gave the day what I had and that is the end of the story.  Some days are just that way and you have to accept them for what they are.  Bad race days but solid efforts that will pay off on another day in the near future.

Here's how my race went down.

Miles 1 - 2    I took it out at a comfortably fast pace letting my body dictate the speed.

Miles 3 & 4  were quite hilly so I still had not found my groove yet.

Miles 5 - 9   were perfect.  All splits were sub 7 and I was not working extremely hard. Hard, but not extremely hard. I had found my groove.

Mile 10 -    7:10- slight slowing occurred. I think this was where we had a head wind.

Miles 11 -   7:20 - still had the head wind and trying to recover from head wind as we turned into town.

Mile 12 -    7:20 - still recovering and digging deep at this point. Looking down. Trying to increase my cadence.

Mile 13 - 7: 39 - Anyone who runs this race knows mile 13 is impossible. As soon as you see the 13 mile mark you know it's time. Time for "The Hill".  It's a very long climb that lasts for about 3/4 of a mile. Maybe a bit less.

The last half mile and .2 is all downhill and beautifully welcoming. I did incorporate my lethal kick and managed to edge out at least 2 women in the last 50 yards. Go me!

My time - was 1:34:01.  Average pace was 7:11.  Satisfied? Yes. Happy?  Yes. I was faster than last year's time by 25 seconds.  So much for all those goals.