charlottesville half marathon race report

We headed to Charlottesville on a beautiful Friday afternoon. Our hearts were and are still heavy with grief from the shootings that had occurred at VT on Monday. As I mentioned in a previous post, I decided to run the 1/2 marathon to support and in honor of the Hokies. Here is a picture of the back of the shirt I made to wear in the race:



We left early enough that Nathan got in a quick visit to Monticello while Liam and I checked into our hotel and grabbed a few zzzzz's. We went downtown to pick up my race packet and search for some dinner. I had a minor heart attack when they couldn't find my packet and then found it in the marathon pile... and were unsure if I'd be DQ'ed for doing the half marathon instead. I have to say (not to complain, OK I will) it was not the best organized event. Dinner was overpriced and forgettable, but our bellies were filled. We found a gelato stand and indulged. After wandering around the pedestrian mall and watching bubbles and street performers, we headed back to the hotel to get some sleep. Oh, did I mention they changed the start time to 6:30?!

Yeah, that was a bit of a shock and disappointment that was announced about a week or so before the race. The previous start time had been 7:30 - still early! I was up at 4:00 AM and dozed until 5:00. Even though the weather forecast was in the high 70's for the day, it was a dark and chilly morning...





Yes, my son is eating Wheat Thins for breakfast!

I'm excited?

I spent the entire 15 minutes of extra time at the start line waiting in line for the port a potties - no surprise there. Then I headed toward the back of the pack with my peeps - the slow pokes. :) In hindsight, I probably could have started farther up, but with my unpredictable injury I didn't want to get in anybody's way, soooo... I didn't even hear the start gun (or whatever) go off, we all just started moving like a herd of sheep, though a small one.

The hills started almost immediately. We ran through the downtown and university area - very beautiful and historic campus setting. Old, obviously. Nathan and I had planned to meet at miles 3 and 10, so I knew I didn't have too far to go before getting a boost of inspiration. I don't know if it was due to the early start time, but there was very little crowd support save the race officials and motorcycle cops (they didn't seem to happy to be working, either!). The roads were not fully closed either, so it was kind of hard for some of the runners to find their safe boundaries. I ran the first three miles probably slower than I would have under normal circumstances. My shin was OK, just OK but I certainly wasn't pushing myself. Seeing Liam and Nathan was so great, but I think Liam was confused (and sad) when I just kept running!



I also knew that I wouldn't see them for a while, so I was trying to think of other mental games to play to pass the time. I had my shuffle on, but instead of listening to it, I decided to enjoy the entire experience, the beautiful morning, and scenery. Around mile 4 the shin started flaring up. I was concerned, but continued to push onward. I felt good, although I was freezing. I couldn't really feel my legs, forearms, and my hands were like ice blocks. I got a very pleasant surprise around mile 5 when Nathan and Liam re-appeared, though it seemed they were followed by hills of gargantuan proportions every time I saw them! We were running through some beautiful country - golf course and then a wooded area. I was running alongside another gentleman, kind of lost in my thoughts when two deer crossed literally RIGHT in front of me. I screamed, "Oh my God!" It wasn't like cute Bambi deer - in the instant they passed me I thought they were wolves! haha, kind of funny now that I look back on it. I think with all of the recent "gunman" talk, it is safe to say I am on edge.

Mile 6.5 - the turnaround point - was quickly approaching. At the point where the marathoners split off, I felt pretty sad not to be joining them. At that point, I felt like I could have pulled off the full 26.2 - very easy to say at mile 6.5! The actual turnaround point was incredibly lame and anti-climactic. One orange cone at the end of a cul-de-sac with a white glove on it. No race official, no nothing. Oh well, on we go.





I decided to push myself for the second half since I felt ok and I knew what to expect (the course was an out and back). I'm proud to say, I did not get passed once the whole second half and passed several people. I firmly believe that my full marathon training helped me finish strong, though the hills were killer. I ended up doing a negative split for the second half - about 4 min. faster than the first half including a potty break.

I got to kiss this face every time I saw my two biggest fans!



All in all, I'm happy I ran the half marathon. I won't lie - I certainly felt some pangs of disappointment that I didn't run the full 26.2, but that is life. It was a good race and I was glad to be able to show my support for the Hokies. I don't know that I'd recommend this race unless you LOVE hills. It was beautiful scenery, but the crowd support was pretty much limited to the finish line.







Thanks to all my friends and family for the support they've shown me over the last four months. I've had fun sharing my marathon journey with you and I hope you'll keep reading to see what's next. One thing I realized is that it's lonely running races alone, so... who's coming with me next time?

hokie pride

To say that I'm devastated by the events that happened yesterday at Virginia Tech is an understatement. As I've told many friends, trying to put my feelings into words trivializes it, but I'll try. I was in shock, disbelief as the events unfolded yesterday and the horrific story just got worse and worse. Virginia Tech was a place I always felt happy and safe. I look back on my four years there one of the happiest times of my life. I spent many, many hours in Norris Hall taking classes and also in West AJ with my friends. One of the professors that was killed, Dr. Loganathan, taught some of the first civil engineering courses I took. He was one of the good ones that you don't forget, and now we never will. His death made an already personal tragedy much more real.

I've decided to downgrade the marathon this weekend to a half marathon due to the aforementioned shin splint injury. I'm running in honor of the Hokies who were killed, their families, the school, the students, and everyone who was touched by this event. Maybe it seems silly or just dumb but I cannot think of what else I can do other than send my prayers and hug my family a little closer.

moment of truth

I haven't run since last Tuesday (see previous post). I have been working out, stretching, etc. but it is amazing how tight and tired my muscles are, given this extended break from running. I still feel some pain in my lower leg going up and down stairs. TOnight, I'm going to go for a walk on the treadmill and perhaps try to jog just to see how things feel.

cause for concern

The marathon is in 10 days - I can't believe it is finally here. All the training has been done and the arrangements have been made. We plan to arrive in C'ville the evening before, do the packet pickup and drive the course. I'm still in denial about the hills. I haven't done much hill training, but that's ok. I did do speed work this time around!

I've had some problems with shin splints pretty much for the last 5 months. They've come and gone. They seem to have gone completely in my left leg. For a while, my calves were super tight. I am concerned about my right lower leg, though. I did a relatively short run yesterday and it really hurt. Really. I feel a little gimpy today and I didn't run. So, I am concerned. I have decided to not run until race day (supplementing with cardio through cycling) unless things dramatically improve. I'm getting a massage tomorrow night to see if the problem is just muscle tightness, but I think it may be something more. I still have all intentions of running next Saturday, but we'll just have to see what happens.

I freaked out about this a little yesterday, but today just realized... it's not about the race, it's about the journey. Yeah, it sounds a little trite to say that, especially since I may not be able to complete the task I set out to do 15 weeks ago, but it's not worth getting upset about for more than a passing moment. Every time I go run, I'm pretty thankful that I can run and something like this is not going to stop me in the long term.

last long run - part 2

OK, so I have a little more energy (just a little) this evening to describe what may be my last long run (ever?) before the marathon. To be consistent with the rest of my blog posts, I will start out with some complaining. Motivation was at an all time low. I had been sick all week with either a cold or allergies (to running?)... so I was kind of down. I decided to rest on Saturday and then run long on Sunday afternoon.

As usual, I headed up to the W&OD trail and set out to run. Due to some unforeseen um, digestive issues, I needed to head home after only 3 short miles. Don't want to get into the details here, I'll let you imagine for yourself. I was ready to bag the entire run, thinking up scenarios ranging from taking a day off from work mid-week and completing the run then to completely NOT doing it. I also considered "sitting in a field" which is what my friend Gigi would wax poetic about while she was training for her first marathon several years ago - meaning, her husband knew she was supposed to be running for several hours so she couldn't go home... so instead of running she would go sit in a field for a while then go home! I don't think this ever really happened, but it is a nice idea when you're desperate.

When I got home, Nathan gave me a nice pep talk and told me to shake it off and just run for a couple more miles to see how I felt. Of course, I knew I'd do the rest of the run then... So I did 4 - 4.3 mi. loops around the neighborhood. Yes, got kind of boring. But I had the security of stopping at home every 45 min. for whatever I needed. Most annoying part of the run was the constant running nose. But I did it and my time was not too bad either. My recovery last night was pretty good - I was not a zombie. Today, I did have to walk sideways down the stairs in the morning but things loosened up as the day went on. Less than three weeks to go!

last long run

I ran 20 today, but I'm too tired to blog about it. Just throwing it out there in case anyone is interested! More details to come... TLC