Let’s start with the night before…
I taught at the Museum of Science- 19 Cubs from Braintree- they were great! We made kaleidoscopes and did a bunch of experiments with refraction. During the day I delayed my workout because my father and sister-in-law came up to our house from CT with a SNOWBLOWER. WOOOO. I made a paleo sausage/spinach/egg drop soup and some acorn squash/almond flour muffins (which I need to make again and photograph- they were amazing).
Needless to say, it was busy, and I didn’t eat a real dinner until 11:30PM- and even then, it was only because Mike is da bomb and thought of me He made mini beef banh mi sandwiches!
We assembled them while sitting on the couch, chatting, and watching SNL. perfect! (except… 11:30 PM!) … and that was my pre-race dinner. Healthy, but late. We shared a sirloin steak that had been marinated in lime and soy, garlic and chilies, rice wine vinegar, and cilantro. Carrot salad, cilantro. nomnomnom. Based off of this recipe from martha stewart: http://www.marthastewart.com/868017/banh-mi-sandwich
Up at 6:45 (10AM start)- had coffee, and one pancake with a smidge of peanut butter. My stomach is not excited about my pre-race dinner choice. Also, I start to get anxious about a race that I am NOT RACING. what?!? I spend the morning debating how to dress for 10 degree weather with 20 mph winds. Gah. Regret my choice to run? Nah.
7:45- decide on my CW-X compression tights, a lululemon bra/top, j.crew tissue turtleneck, Nike half-zip long sleeve, and my 2013 Boston jacket. Also- Boston Red Sox hat, under armour fleece headband, lululemon running gloves, AND EMS gloves. (double gloving my fingers was key). Also- in a moment of genius, I grabbed a pair of running sunglasses my mom put in my Easter basket last year- these proved crucial in the wind.
We arrived at the Middle School that the race had taken over as headquarters about an hour from the start of the race- no lines, everything totally perfect. I started chatting with a chick that looked about my age- we decided to start the race together.
Race began slightly uphill- and the roads had a good amount of blown snow on them- a very slow first mile for me- Tracy (my new friend!), however, wove around people and kicked it into gear- she ran a great race and nearly got a sub 2 hour race!
I reminded myself to run light and easy and see what happens. The course is known for being really hilly and quite challenging- and since I had no idea what that meant, I wanted to make sure I had the chutzpah just to get to the end.
Miles 1-5:
1- 8:34
2-7:55
3-7:30
4: 7:39
5- 8:14
The “rolling Hills” begin around mile 5- steeeeeeep uphills (about .1 miles in length, nothing terrible), followed by steeeeeep downhills. Any speed lost going up was made up coming down. The race proceeded in this manner for a bit. The course is gorgeous- at each bend, the top of each hill was a classic New Hampshire vista- if I wasn’t double gloved and couldn’t operate my phone, I would have taken 1000000 pictures.
Oh- I ran without music. A first. I consciously did this to concentrate on how I felt and so that I really enjoyed being present in the moment. When the wind literally blew me backwards and my lips were numb I regretted it a little bit. I ended up singing Katy Perry’s Roar to myself the whole way. Yuuuup.
Mile 6- 7:50 – took the GU they had on-course- Espresso! my fav! It was frozen-ish, though- so I had maybe 1/2 of it. They had water every 4 miles- my only criticism of fuel on the course for this race is that there should have been water about 1/2 a mile following the gu, not with it. Oh well!
Mile 7- 7:58 – all rolling hills, until Mile 10.
Mile 8- 7:51
Mile 9- 7:57
Tracy had mentioned to me that the hardest part of the race really started at mile 10. Yes, yes it did. There was a well-placed water stop at the 10 mile mark- we rounded a sharp corner, and proceeded straight uphill- like vertical stairs steep. People were walking. I trotted up (slower, for sure)- but I still felt good.
Mile 10- 8:52
Mile 11- 9:02
Mile 12- 9:02
ooofff. This was a “they’re not kidding” kind of hill situation. Up, Up, Up, and Up. There was some down and some “flat” but mostly up. I don’t train on this amount of up (or on the terrain of the previous 3 miles of short but very steep rollers). I walked a couple of times for 10-15 seconds or so during mile 11. I didn’t know what was coming and I had not reached the “radio tower”- the visual signal that I had crested the “hill”. I think I could have run it and maintained pace- but I just was feeling like making sure I felt great until the end was more important.
I crossed the matt for the 13.1 split at 1:47 or so- I remember feeling disappointed that I didn’t book it a little more in the last 2 miles so that I could have at least gotten over the hump in 1:44 or so- but I just kept trucking.
Mile 13- 8:34
Mile 14- 8:12
Mile 15- 8:11
Mile 16- 7:31
The phrase “It’s all down hill from here” rang true. It was not actually all down hill (HA)- but since I knew I had done the hardest part, I focused on getting back on track. I literally practiced focusing in on staying “on pace” on tired legs. I wanted each mile to be faster than the previous.
The last .1 miles- uphill (of course), and into the wind.
Moments from the finishing matt- I don’t look to bent over or terrible!
In the end, I ran a 2:10:47 and an 8:11 average pace. I’m fine with it. I finished 14/29 for my age group- and there were plenty of really fast chickies out there today. This race is attended by many running clubs and people from out of state- so it is no surprise to me that I didn’t place higher! I felt so free to set my own goal and just go by feel. Also, I did not feel trashed after the race and that felt good. Don’t get me wrong, I am going to be sore (since my legs have not run hills like that in…. ever)- but I felt like I had more in me. The first thing I said to Mike was “I could have run a marathon today”- I think if I needed to, I would and could have kept my pace right around 8 mins and done the 26.2.
Would I race this again? YES. I loved the course. It was SUPER hard- but I feel like I could set a goal- for example- sub 2 hours- and achieve it realistically. I need to be a lot stronger to approach this distance with 1/2 marathon pace on the brain- even though it is only 3 miles longer, the course itself wears on you by the halfway point. I paced it like a marathon- and I had juice left in the tank at the end. Next time, no need to be so conservative- however- I think this means that I can narrow in on something in the 7:40’s or less for Boston as doable.
Next up? The Super 5k next weekend in Lowell! Not sure if I am going to ease up on training to feel fresh yet- but I am excited to see what happens when I just let it all out
I very much enjoyed this whole post! Have a great run this coming weekend, also!