After a week where I had serious doubts about my ability to run in the race, Saturday really was a great race! I have only run one other half marathon, and that was in November of 2008. Back then I was REALLY running hard - so hard that in the months following that race I was found to have not one but two stress fractures. My time back then was 1:59, which I was very excited about. Flash forward to 2010, and I knew that I had not been running as hard I had been for the first half, but I also knew that I was in better overall condition. I knew that I was better at pacing, and I knew that I had learned to enjoy running even more than before. That being said, I had expectations that I would finish somewhere around 2:15.
Saturday morning I got up around 4:20. I knew that I had to be at the race site no later than 6:30, and it would take me a little over an hour to get there, so I wanted to make sure I gave myself enough time. I got up, ate some oatmeal and had a cup of coffee, and off I went. It is amazing how if I had been up early any other day of the week, I would have been a complete zombie. But instead, I was alive, ready, and excited! I had no problems getting to the park in downtown New Bern where the race was to start, but I was stressing a little about the time at the registration table. One complaint I would have about this race was that they had one table set up with 3 lines - one for the half, one for the 10K, and one for the 5K. The half was to start at 7, the 10K 30 minutes later, and the 5K 30 minutes after that. Anyway, long story short, the line to pick up my race packet was quite long, and yet people were walking up to another table where you could sign up if you had not already registered, and those people were getting their packets while we stood in line for quite a while. Finally by the time I did get my packet, I had just enough time to run back to my car to drop off my sweats and the packet, put on my race number, and run back to the start. All in all, I guess that worked out OK because then I didn't have to stand around too long in the cool morning air, and I got a decent little warm up run to boot!
It was a great crowd before the start. People just milling about, encouraging one another. People would say, "The start is a little closer up there - you might want to move that way if you are concerned about your time." I guess they looked at me and knew right away that I was a speed demon - not! It was great to see all the different race t-shirts that people wore - I even saw a couple who had competed the week before at the Kona Iron Man Championships, and here they were now running in a little half-marathon in New Bern. I thought that was pretty cool. Once the horn went off signifying the start of the race, I got to hear one of those neat "race day" sounds - the sounds of hundreds of runners hitting their watch/gps. We began by running past the park and out onto the first bridge. Running over a bridge as the sun is coming up is a beautiful thing. Runner after runner commented on the beauty of it all.
I wanted to run this race with great caution. I really just wanted to enjoy it, especially since 48 hours before I was at the doctor and seriously doubting I would be able to run. I knew that as long as I ran a smoothly then I would be able to come in under 2:15 with no problem. I just wanted to start slow, and if about mid-way through the race I felt good, then maybe I would pick up the pace to the finish. I started talking with a couple of runners, and quickly became friends with a guy who as chance would have it, was a great United Methodist who happened to be an attorney. Turned out we knew many of the same ministers, and he was even familiar with my wife's law firm, having dealt with them once before. Scott told me that if I wanted to finish quick, then I could just leave him behind because he was planning on finishing around 2:30. But running together really seemed to help both of us, as the pace was really quite comfortable - maybe a little slower than I had planned, and a little faster than he had planned. I walked through the water stops to make sure I drank more than I spilled, and he would do the same. For a good 6 miles, we really lifted each other up. At the mile 6 water stop, I realized my time was well within my goal, but I also realized I felt amazing and was ready to pick up the pace. With that, I took off, and only saw Scott again when he finished the race.
The next 7 miles were fantastic. I was running with a purpose, and truly did not feel like I had already run 6 before. Below I have listed my mile splits, and you will see it was a different race. I did not once use the Ipod I had in my pocket - I just loved hearing the sounds of my feet and the sounds of the volunteers cheering us on. I made a point to say thank you to every single one of them who were out there, because I know they could not have been having much fun. I felt like I was constantly in a runner's high for those 7 miles. And another neat thing - after that mile 6 water stop, not a single runner passed me. One by one I tracked down another. Granted, the neat thing about running is that the only person I was really racing against was myself. Everyone comes into it running against themselves, and not the other runners. In the end, I think it's fair to say that I won.
My time for the race was 2:01:45. Considering I had thought it might be closer to 2:15, I was extremely happy. Considering I know that I could have easily beaten my PR had I picked it up a little earlier in the race, I was still extremely happy. Considering how enjoyable running 13.1 miles was, I was incredibly happy. Definitely a race I would recommend to anyone considering running a half (or 10K - or even 5K). Also learned a lot about myself and how to enjoy a run. Hopefully I will apply these lessons when I run my next full marathon in February.
Below are my splits for the race:
Mi 1 9:32.48
Mi 2 9:35.68
Mi 3 9:39.68
Mi 4 9:50.65
Mi 5 9:53.46
Mi 6 9:47.98
Mi 7 9:21.67
Mi 8 9:01.76
Mi 9 9:00.51
Mi 10 8:57.74
Mi 11 8:42.27
Mi 12 8:45.52
Mi 13 8:16.59
Final time = 2:01:45
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