ORRRC Half Marathon

I rarely do the same race twice unless it's 1) one of my absolute favorites, or 2) very close to where I live.  The Ohio River Road Runners' Club Half Marathon is both one of my favorites and only a 25 minute drive away from home.  I came into this one on minimal training after twisting my knee on a trail run last month.  It's nothing major, but it does give me problems after I get to 6 or 7 miles.  I haven't been able to do a long run since the Augusta Half Marathon one month ago.  This led to me having pretty low expectations going into this race.  I was sure I'd have fun, but I only set the goal of keeping my sub-2:00 streak alive.  Nothing close to a PR.  I didn't even wear a watch because I didn't want to put any pressure on myself.  Apparently this is my new recipe for success.

It was a beautiful race morning with temps around 52 degrees with some patchy fog.  Last year's race started in freezing conditions so it was nice to be able to warm-up outside rather than inside the Xenia YMCA like last year.  I gave myself a solid hour to stretch, walk around a bit and listen to some music.  There were four hundred more people in this year's race which is probably due to the extremely mild winter we had.  People were actually able to train for a March marathon/half-marathon.  The start was a bit more congested than last year, but it was handled very well.  We lined up outside the Y to start the race.

Miles 1-5: Not a whole lot to comment on during this first stretch as it's the same course as last year.  We made a loop north of the Y and made our way back south to the bike path.  I was feeling pretty good and in control of my pace.  I don't have many splits since I wasn't wearing a watch.  Mile 2 came in at 16:58 so I knew I had actually started faster than I normally do.  But I really didn't care because I felt great.  We hit the bike path for a quarter mile or so, then on to a country road with a few hills.  These were the only hills on the course and they're actually a nice change of pace.  I knew where we were on this course at all times since I ran it last year which certainly helped.  We made our way back to the bike path just after mile 4 and began the long trek toward the turn around at Central State University.

Miles 6-10:  What I'm about to say is something I've repeated on this blog several times.  Some races go by without that elusive "runner's high".  But once in a while a race comes along in which I feel like the miles are going by effortlessly.  This was one of those experiences and it was something I haven't had since the Air Force Half Marathon last September.  One of the few clocks in this race is at mile 6.  I made a point to look at it because I knew I was running a respectable time.  50:31.  What?  I'm usually around 54-55 minutes at the 6 mile mark.  And I still felt great!  But I didn't mess with the idea of a PR just yet.  My training had been terrible recently, so I just held at the pace I had been running.  We continued on the bike path and made the left hand turn towards Central State.  This path is probably 3/4 mile long before turning back around and hitting the 8 mile marker.  Then a right turn back to where we came from.  I took Gatorade at both aid stations during this section, but I actually jogged through the aid stations which I normally don't do.  I won a mini-battle with a few other runners who I was playing back and forth with and noticed I had picked off a few more runners along the way.  The 10 mile mark was coming up which is located in the same spot as the 6 mile mark.  That meant a clock.  At this point I was beyond curious.  1:22 and change!!!  My normal ten mile time is around 1:28-1:30.  Decision made.  I'm going for a new PR!

Mile 11-Finish: I picked it up some after seeing the clock, but I kept it within reason.  No sense going for a new PR and bonking two miles down the road.  I was feeling good despite my knee aching some.  But I absolutely could not cut back on my pace.  My goal last year was to break 1:50 and I ran a 1:50.01 at the Air Force Half.  It was a new PR, but knowing I was that close to breaking the mark was frustrating.  No way was that happening here.  We kept up with the bike path until the last mile or so (I even skipped the last water station on the bike path) which finishes in town.  Knowing where I was as I stepped off the bike path definitely helped.  The last bit is uphill and it was a struggle to finish strong, but I gave it everything I had left.  I can't wait to see the photos at the finish line because I had to have looked like a complete idiot.  Seeing the time on the clock confirmed a new PR but by much more than I thought.

1:45.44!!!  A new PR by over four minutes!

I had to have looked like a little kid when I crossed the mat and threw out the fist pump.  But I did remember to stretch out good after the race, unlike some of my previous PR races.  After stretching, I got some chicken noodle soup, fruit, water, and Gatorade before leaving.  This race is really a bargain at $25.  We also received a New Balance tech tee.  Much nicer than some of the larger races I've done.  I decided against doing a half in April and will focus on the Capital City Half Marathon in May.  That race was going to be my PR attempt, so I'm not quite sure where to set the bar for that race.  I do have a couple of shorter races for some speedwork to keep April interesting.

Next race: Twin Creek 10K- Germantown, OH