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Today was the Frozen Half Marathon in St. Paul, MN. It was a bit warm (20 degrees) but I managed to sweat it out to the end. Deb came along for this one. That of course makes it a bit more special. Always fun to have that hug at the end of the race.

We arrived about 45 minutes prior to gun time. I did not pre-register for this event. Mistake 1 of 2 that I will mention. Line was a bit long and it was chaotic. Took about 20 minutes. Now only 25 minutes to gun time.

Next I needed to get a few things ready prior to the run. Those were my camel bak and my I-pod. Went outside to do that because it was too hot inside. I stood inside a bus kiosk. Had taken off fleece pullover and was getting things ready. A guy was walking by and said here I’ll push this button for you. Heat lamps came on. We are getting to wimpy in MN when we have to put heat lamps in bus kiosks. What Next! I finished getting ready. Now down to 15 minutes to gun time. Oh geez the line to the porta doodads is long. I got in line and stretched as I inched closer to the little hut. Finally I was on my way to the start line 2 minutes prior to gun time. All is fine I did my stretching while waitng and I was good to go.

Gun goes off and after a 2 minute shuffle I was on the way. Oh, no music. I forgot to hit the I-pod ply button. Still no music what the heck? Oh I forgot to move the switch to the on position. Still no music and irritation setting in. Dang I forgot to put the earphones in. These senior moments are a pain. I fish the earphones out from under my pullover and get them into positions and low and behold queen sounds good. I did all that while I was running and still managed a sub 10 minute mile.

My plan was to run two miles and than break for a drink and get back at it. I wanted to be at a 10 minute pace for 8 miles including the breaks and from that point I would run comfortably without trying to push at all. I had 40 oz of Gatorade, two granola bars and some cliff shot doodads that they handed out in the building that we registered (black cherry chewy things). I drank at mile 2 and than at 4 and every two after that I consumed a black cherry chewy thing, a chunk of granola bar and drank a bit of Gatorade. I was glad I was prepared because there were only two water stops. That I knew about ahead of time.

As I went along I periodically checked to see how I was doing pace wise. Mile 6 I was a bit under a 10 minute pace. Mile 8 had me right at a 10 minute pace. I was really enjoying the run. There were more ups and downs that I had remembered. Mistake #2 did not scout the course prior. I was very pleased with my progress and looked forward to getting to the end.

At mile 10 I could feel that I had not been to this distance in quite sometime. The legs were crying out WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS? My response was never mind just get me to the end. From mile 10 I walked after each mile just for a quick little break. My pace was significantly slower but not worry that was what I expected. I was still quite enthusiastic about how things were going. As we turn for the lat .3 miles there is a huge hill to climb (about .1 mile) I had just rested and figured I would run up it. WRONG. Heck it was all I could do to walk up it. I than ran to the dw, a Kodak moment, a high five and to the finish line. Official time 2:22:30.

It was really a fun day on the streets. The temp was not a problem at all. In fact I took off my neck band and lifted the ear flaps off my ears. Not as many spectators as other races but I really only needed my lovely dear wife with her stunning new boots at the end and a complete stranger to make it a bit more fun. This one guy was at four different spots on the course including the finish line. A high five at every spot for me and a congrats at the finish line. It’s amazing how much joy a stranger can make someone feel so good.

Long report but hey it was a great time. Feel free to join me on the next one. I’ll be happy to run with any and all.

Posted by Tim on January 28, 2008 10:41 AM | Permalink