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Silver Comet Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Mableton, Georgia
United States
Silver Comet Races
38F / 3C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 20m 40s
Overall Rank = 3/1546
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Woke up at 0530, then laid in bed for another 10 minutes. Not a good night of sleep.

Developed a head cold while camping and my sinuses were not happy. I seriously thought it would affect my race, but was determined to do my best nonetheless.

My wife asked for my Garmin before the race, so I was going to run naked. Ugh. I've heard of many ppl running well without their Garmins, so I went in with an open mind.
Event warmup:

Once we arrived to the race start, ran around looking for a bathroom. #2 had to happen and I only had 10 minutes to make it happen. The lines to the port o lets were at least 25 deep. No way they'd all be done before the race started. Time to take drastic measures.

Crossed the street to the Race Trac and the line was way too long. No way would I make it in time. So, ran to the Food Lion and sneaked around the back. There were woods back there and I ducked in...

What happened next is probably TMI AND incriminatory, so I won't go into details. Let's just say that you shouldn't pick up newspapers in supermarket wooded areas. :)
Run
  • 1h 20m 40s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 06m 10s  min/mile
Comments:

I made it to back to the race start and looked around for the 7min/mi start...nope! There was only an 8 min/mi banner. Oh well, I'll start there!

We walked maybe a half mile to the race start, then the race started. Right off, several ppl sprinted off. Really? Sprinting to start a half mary is noob...unless you're going to rock it.

Anyways, I settled into a pace with a runner named Dan, from Connecticut. Nice guy. We ran together for the next three miles and talked about family, racing, and our professions.

Dan and I picked off runners that started off too fast. They were hurting after a mile and a half. D00d, it's going to be a long race for you. Pace is the name of the game.

At the 2.5 mile mark, another racer came up on us. I decided it was time to push the pace a bit at this point. Dan and the other racer hung until aprox mile 3, then fell behind. The racer that came up on us was the eventual 4OA. I think Dan took 6OA.

Two racers ahead of me at this point, but they were at least a minute ahead. I tried to step it up and make up ground, but don't think I was able to put much of a dent into their lead.

I settled into cruise control, trying to keep the rest of the miles at a pace of 6 min/mi or better. It was easy on the out, as it seemed it was a minimal decline. The return would be a bear, though.

At the turn around, I caught a glimpse of the OA and 2OA and they looked strong. The OA was in basketball shorts and a long sleeve tech shirt. Run in what is comfy, right? I'd be CHAFED up bad if I ran in that.

After the turn around, saw a small group of runners behind me and I high fived a few and yelled at them to stay strong. After that, all the oncoming runners kept yelling motivating things, telling me to catch the leaders, which were a minute or so ahead. I acknowledged as many ppl as I could, yelling back "thank yous" or "way to go"...In the end, I had to stop replying, but just nodded. It was too exhausting to keep doing that every few mins.

At the 11 mile mark, I was at 1:07 and KNEW I had to pick it up if I wanted to come in under 1:20. I was about a minute off target. I really focused on just running as hard as I could. I had no idea what my pace was, but figured i was running slightly sub 6.

At the 12 mile point, I was at 1:14 and picked it up as much as I could. Probably running a 5:45 pace, but just could not go any faster. Off in the distance, I could see the end and I could barely make out a sub 1:20 split. When I hit the 13 mile mark, it turned into 1:20. I let off at that point and ran it in.

The crowds were great I enjoyed finishing.
What would you do differently?:

Push the first 2 or 3 miles a bit faster. Not having my garmin is no excuse.
Post race
Warm down:

Talked with Dan, his friend Greg, and a few other racers. The 4OA was VERY complementary about my form and endurance. A question he asked that struck me as really funny was if I had taken a GU or something at mile 3 b/c of how I took off and left them behind. I just told him I had to make up time for the first few miles. Genuinely nice guy. I really like him. Raul or something...and a HELL of a runner.

After the conversation with Raul, ran with Dan and his buddy the opposite direction of the race together. We ran a mile out, then a mile back...super easy.

I heard them talk about a hawk or some other bird of prey that caught a rodent along the trail right after I ran by. I would have loved to have seen it. Love nature.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Headcold and lack of runs the week leading into the race...I also think I cuold have run better with garmin...probably all mental.

Event comments:

I really liked this race...except the COTTON long sleeve tshirts...last year they were technical long sleeve...




Last updated: 2011-10-29 12:00 AM
Running
01:20:40 | 13.1 miles | 06m 10s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 3/1546
Performance: Good
Course:
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4

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2011-10-30 7:43 PM

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Elite
3683
20001000500100252525
Whispering Pines, North Carolina
Subject: Silver Comet Half Marathon


2011-10-30 7:53 PM
in reply to: #3744691

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Champion
6973
500010005001001001001002525
marietta
Subject: RE: Silver Comet Half Marathon
wow.  awesome freakin' job man. FAST!!!!    way to throw a duece down at food lion too!  i thought about heading over race day to see if i could get in but decided to sleep in.
2011-10-31 7:49 AM
in reply to: #3744691

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Veteran
225
10010025
Decatur GA
Subject: RE: Silver Comet Half Marathon
Oh that was you we saw takin a crap back there....just kiddin...way to improvise! You're a bad mutha...shut my mouth! I thought halloween was going to be scary..but this beats it hands down!
2011-11-01 10:00 AM
in reply to: #3744691

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Master
2021
2000
Alpharetta, GA
Subject: RE: Silver Comet Half Marathon
Quote of the day! ha ha ha ha h

Sprinting to start a half mary is noob...unless you're going to rock it.



As always, super strong running d00d! Impressive!
2011-11-01 11:37 AM
in reply to: #3744691

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Master
2479
2000100100100100252525
Atlanta, Georgia
Gold member
Subject: RE: Silver Comet Half Marathon
I think you're marinated in fast sauce.

That's some kind of blistering fast pace, mate! Way to go.
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