Tom King Classic Half Marathon

Go big or go home. That was my approach for Saturday's race. I had one goal. I only wanted one outcome. Anything less was unsatisfactory for me. And maybe that was wrong of me. But more about that in a future blog.

I felt really good the day before. I went for an easy 35 minute run in the morning. I and put together a strong 70' minute ride in the evening. I made sure I ate well. I was in bed, in my tights, at a very reasonable hour. As usual, I was a little wound up. Maybe it was not having raced lately or nervous that I was really over stretching.

The race had a different feel for it. It is very much a community event. It has a 5k run and 3k walk prior to the half marathon. That means gun time wasn't until 8:30. We arrived around 7:00 and I took the first hour to work with FTP athletes that were racing the 5k. We were able to watch them participate before needing to warmup. I never felt rushed. I liked being on my feet moving around prior to the race.

I entered the corral moments before the gun started the race. I knew what was needed at nearly every step of the race. My plan was to cruise for the first 4 miles. And then begin to slowly picking it up through 10 miles. Then I needed a solid 5k to finish off a killer race. I knew it was a stretch but I thought it would come down to two things--establishing a steady pace in the beginning and having the heart to kick in the end.

Unfortunately, neither of those panned out for me on Saturday. Last year, I started ING half mary with a fast first mile. I didn't want to make that mistake this year. So I paced myself. First mile was under control. Nice and smooth at 6:57. I let the jitters move out and worked to establish a smooth pace around 7:00. The next two miles ticked off at 7:03 and 7:04. Smooth and in control.

Or so I thought. Mile 4 slipped to 7:10. Hmmm. This is a flat course with little to no elevation gain. Maybe it was a false flat. Mile 5 is slipping even more. 7:15 pace....7:20 pace. WTF??? I don't feel tired yet. I still feel strong but my mental strength is slipping fast. Next thing I know, I am 30s off pace.

Houston, we have a problem.

I tell myself to make it to the turn around and then mentally reset. But things aren't looking good as I make the turnaround at 6.3 miles. I tell myself to run one mile at a comfortable pace and then negative split the backside. I have always been stronger on the back side.

No go. It just isn't happening today. 7 miles in, I am reduced to a 7:45. Just trying to hold it together now. 8 miles and pace is shot, I am over it. It is going to a be a LONG jog back. I take some time to talk to other struggling athletes. Misery loves company. I learn that most have no clue how close they are to still meeting their goals. Two guys were ahead of pace.

I decided to completely shut it down at this point. There is no reason to trash the body. It is time to start recovering. I take my time at each aid station and put back some fluids. I am also taking walk breaks each mile. Time to focus on the next race.

I ended up crossing the line at 1:50 (8:25 pace). I realize that for many this would be a great race but it was nearly 20 minutes slower than I anticipated. I really don't have an excuse. Likely, I was overstretching in my goal. I just didn't have it that day. I went for it and it backfired.

I was generally in a good mood after the race. You never want to have a bad race but I do believe in going for it every once in a while. And I don't regret going for it. I think I made the right call in completely shutting it down. This was a low priority race and had little implication on my upcoming season. I even had the energy to coach a group ride 1.5 hours after crossing the finish line.

Now onto more important matters....