Illinois Half Marathon RR
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Alex Kubacki
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Michele "1L" Keane
Kenny B.
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Jeff F
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Illinois Half Marathon RR
Jeff F Sun Apr 29, 2012 10:59 am
Due to this being basically my hometown marathon my original goal was to run the marathon every year for as long as I could, well that streak ended at three due to dropping back to the half this year. After a very busy 2011 I was tired and injured as I started my training for the full in January. By the end of January I quickly realized that I was not going to be ready for the full and dropped to the half.
My training was somewhat sporadic due to work, weather and my somewhat reduced motivation to run. I did run an 8K last month to gauge how my training was progressing. Based upon that run, the McMillan Calculator estimated a half time of 1:40:21. I really didn’t think that was possible because I wasn’t feeling it during my training runs and I missed several runs over the last several weeks. I was thinking if everything went well something around 1:42 was possible. I haven’t run a half in over three years and that was during my peak year when I ran most of my current PRs; my half PR is 1:36.
The night before the race I was fortunate enough to have dinner with Kenny, Jim, and Carleen all from 365 runners, along with Carleen’s husband, her friend Susan who was also running, and her husband. The company was great but the restaurant was not prepared for the crowd due to the marathon, so the service was not great. They did comp our meal but it did put a little kink in a pretty good weekend.
The forecast the last couple of days was calling for possible rain, some wind and temps in the upper 40s and lower 50s. The rain and wind woke me up around 4:00 a.m.; I checked the radar and it appeared the rain would pass by race time which it did.
One of the things I like about this race is I can drive to within a short walk of the starting line and wait in my car until about 15 minutes before the start. I opted for a short sleeve shirt with arm warmers, along with shorts and a hat. I did have a throw away shirt I tossed just before the start. This was perfect dress for this race, I took off the arm warmers in mile 7 and I was comfortable the entire race. Some people felt the wind was a factor but I did not feel it was an issue for me.
My strategy was to start out conservatively (around 8:00 pace) and see what the day would give me. I hit mile #1 at 7:52 and felt very comfortable. I then settled into a nice rhythm and hit the next three miles in 7:45, 7:43 and 7:45. I waited until the aid station in mile #5 to take some water. I was anticipating the wind being a factor in miles 5-6 and I picked up the pace a little to catch a group in front of me to draft off of; the wind really wasn’t as tough as I thought it would be so I kept the faster pace for a couple of miles. Miles 5-6 were at 7:37 and 7:27.
In mile 7 I took a gel. I don’t like to eat anything prior to a half so I take the gel just for the extra kick for the last several miles. In addition, I take one with 2X caffeine and I am not a caffeine drinker so I believe this gives me an added boost. It may only be a mental boost but it works for me. After the 7:27 mile I decided to back it off a little because I wasn’t sure I could sustain that pace for the rest of the race, even though I was still feeling pretty comfortable with no lingering injury issues.
Miles 8-10 loop through Meadowbrook Park which in the past years had issues of congestion due to the narrow path through the park. With the wave start that was used this year, the run through the park for me was not congested at all. I maintained a steady pace at 7:44, 7:43 and 7:43 for the next three miles. During mile #10 my left hip began to tighten and I could feel my left ITB and hamstring begin to tighten. My ignition thought was “Oh No” not this again. I tried to focus on my pace and to remain as relaxed as possible. Even thought I continued to have tightness, it never got any worse through the finish.
When I hit mile #10 I decided it was time to race and picked up the pace; I began to pick off runners. It was at this point I began to realize I was way ahead of a 1:42 time and if my math was correct I could be awful close to breaking 1:40. I hit miles 10-11 in 7:32 and 7:32. When I hit mile 12 I pushed it even harder. In the last 5K I would bet I passed 50-60 runners while only 2-3 passed me. I did mile 13 in 7:10, but as I approached the entrance to the stadium I realized a sub-1:40 was not going to happen so I relaxed and made sure I enjoyed crossing the finish on the 50 yard line.
Official time of 1:40:33. Overall place 409/6756, and age group placing of 21/254. Not bad for an old fart. I was pleasantly surprised at how strong I felt through the entire race, and a little disappointed I was so conservative in setting my goal (I guess McMillan was spot on this time). If I would have known I was going to have a day like this I would have shot for something under 1:40; but that is why we run races.
My training was somewhat sporadic due to work, weather and my somewhat reduced motivation to run. I did run an 8K last month to gauge how my training was progressing. Based upon that run, the McMillan Calculator estimated a half time of 1:40:21. I really didn’t think that was possible because I wasn’t feeling it during my training runs and I missed several runs over the last several weeks. I was thinking if everything went well something around 1:42 was possible. I haven’t run a half in over three years and that was during my peak year when I ran most of my current PRs; my half PR is 1:36.
The night before the race I was fortunate enough to have dinner with Kenny, Jim, and Carleen all from 365 runners, along with Carleen’s husband, her friend Susan who was also running, and her husband. The company was great but the restaurant was not prepared for the crowd due to the marathon, so the service was not great. They did comp our meal but it did put a little kink in a pretty good weekend.
The forecast the last couple of days was calling for possible rain, some wind and temps in the upper 40s and lower 50s. The rain and wind woke me up around 4:00 a.m.; I checked the radar and it appeared the rain would pass by race time which it did.
One of the things I like about this race is I can drive to within a short walk of the starting line and wait in my car until about 15 minutes before the start. I opted for a short sleeve shirt with arm warmers, along with shorts and a hat. I did have a throw away shirt I tossed just before the start. This was perfect dress for this race, I took off the arm warmers in mile 7 and I was comfortable the entire race. Some people felt the wind was a factor but I did not feel it was an issue for me.
My strategy was to start out conservatively (around 8:00 pace) and see what the day would give me. I hit mile #1 at 7:52 and felt very comfortable. I then settled into a nice rhythm and hit the next three miles in 7:45, 7:43 and 7:45. I waited until the aid station in mile #5 to take some water. I was anticipating the wind being a factor in miles 5-6 and I picked up the pace a little to catch a group in front of me to draft off of; the wind really wasn’t as tough as I thought it would be so I kept the faster pace for a couple of miles. Miles 5-6 were at 7:37 and 7:27.
In mile 7 I took a gel. I don’t like to eat anything prior to a half so I take the gel just for the extra kick for the last several miles. In addition, I take one with 2X caffeine and I am not a caffeine drinker so I believe this gives me an added boost. It may only be a mental boost but it works for me. After the 7:27 mile I decided to back it off a little because I wasn’t sure I could sustain that pace for the rest of the race, even though I was still feeling pretty comfortable with no lingering injury issues.
Miles 8-10 loop through Meadowbrook Park which in the past years had issues of congestion due to the narrow path through the park. With the wave start that was used this year, the run through the park for me was not congested at all. I maintained a steady pace at 7:44, 7:43 and 7:43 for the next three miles. During mile #10 my left hip began to tighten and I could feel my left ITB and hamstring begin to tighten. My ignition thought was “Oh No” not this again. I tried to focus on my pace and to remain as relaxed as possible. Even thought I continued to have tightness, it never got any worse through the finish.
When I hit mile #10 I decided it was time to race and picked up the pace; I began to pick off runners. It was at this point I began to realize I was way ahead of a 1:42 time and if my math was correct I could be awful close to breaking 1:40. I hit miles 10-11 in 7:32 and 7:32. When I hit mile 12 I pushed it even harder. In the last 5K I would bet I passed 50-60 runners while only 2-3 passed me. I did mile 13 in 7:10, but as I approached the entrance to the stadium I realized a sub-1:40 was not going to happen so I relaxed and made sure I enjoyed crossing the finish on the 50 yard line.
Official time of 1:40:33. Overall place 409/6756, and age group placing of 21/254. Not bad for an old fart. I was pleasantly surprised at how strong I felt through the entire race, and a little disappointed I was so conservative in setting my goal (I guess McMillan was spot on this time). If I would have known I was going to have a day like this I would have shot for something under 1:40; but that is why we run races.
Jeff F- Poster
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
Julie Sun Apr 29, 2012 11:28 am
Congratulations, Jeff! There is always something special about hometown marathons. It sounds like you raced smartly, too.
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
Kenny B. Sun Apr 29, 2012 12:16 pm
Jeff,
Great job with the race. I agree the wind for did not feel like a factor the first half. Thank you very much for setting up the dinner despite their mishaps.
Great job with the race. I agree the wind for did not feel like a factor the first half. Thank you very much for setting up the dinner despite their mishaps.
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
Michele "1L" Keane Sun Apr 29, 2012 12:44 pm
Congrats on an excellent run, and I think you did it right by not fully believing in the McMillan predictor and letting you dictate the race rather than the race dictate to you.
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
mul21 Sun Apr 29, 2012 1:40 pm
Nice job, Jeff. Looks like we both had better days than expected!
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
carleenp Sun Apr 29, 2012 2:24 pm
Nice job! It sounds like you ran a very smart race. It was great to meet you, and thanks for setting up the prerace dinner!
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
Michael Enright Sun Apr 29, 2012 5:13 pm
Well-executed, and good perseverance!
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Bob- Lord Bobby
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
Alex Kubacki Sun Apr 29, 2012 5:24 pm
Congrats on the run. Way to finish up strong.
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
dot520 Sun Apr 29, 2012 6:40 pm
Good one, Jeff! Glad you didn't leave it back on the course or you would have thought, what if?
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
John Kilpatrick Sun Apr 29, 2012 8:06 pm
Good going Jeff - those were some good splits and congrats on the race! I am exactly like you with the Gus with caffeine - I never drink it and feel like it gives me a good kick when I take them (mental or not).
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
fostever Sun Apr 29, 2012 8:53 pm
Yeah, hindsight is always 20/20, right? Sounds like you performed up to your own and Mcmillan's calc expectations. Nice race!
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
Dave-O Mon Apr 30, 2012 5:19 pm
Really well run considering your low expectations. Congrats.
And I think this counts as your streak still being alive.
And I think this counts as your streak still being alive.
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Re: Illinois Half Marathon RR
Schuey Sat May 12, 2012 2:21 pm
Yep I would say the streak is still alive and great job Jeff!
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