Flirt with Dirt 5k

If you can't tell by the race name, this past weekend's event was set to be a trail run.  Unfortunately, monsoon season hit NW Ohio last week and most of the race course at Riverbend Park in Findlay was flooded.  I'm not talking a small amount of water.  It looked to be knee to waist deep in some spots.  But the race organizers did a wonderful job in marking out a new course on paved trails throughout the park.  They did this on Thursday and Friday for a Saturday race AND sent runners an email explaining the situation.  Kudos!

I was prepared for a trail run, as I haven't done one since living in Dayton, and was a bit disappointed.  But, to be honest, I hadn't really planned on racing so much as just getting a good hard run in the books.  With a half marathon next weekend, it certainly wasn't the time to race.

We started out on a paved trail and I took off at a conservative pace.  I was pretty surprised that the lead pack also took off slowly.  Last year's times from this race were extremely fast, especially for a trail run.  The temperature was good, but the humidity became a problem later.  The first mile went by fast as the last half of the first mile was on an equestrian trail.  I clocked in at 7:02.  Pretty well right where I wanted to be.  But the second mile felt horrible.  We made our way back to a paved trail for a short loop around the starting area.  I really started feeling the humidity and slowed down some.  Oddly enough, there wasn't really anyone around me.  I knew I was behind the lead pack and the second pack was somewhere behind me.  I guess I was stuck in no man's land.  The second mile clocked in at 14:22, so I knew I had definitely slowed down.  Mile 3 was not much better, though a battle with another runner helped me along.  We came back by running the same portion from the first mile and the equestrian trail felt excellent after paved trails.  True trail running, for whatever reason, gives me a little extra boost.  I battled back and forth with another runner and finally left him with a quarter mile to go, surged ahead, and clocked in at 21:52 (though my watch showed 21:45).  Not a bad time considering the humidity was getting to me.  It was good enough for 15/265 overall and third in my age group. 

This is the last (of only two!) 5ks for this year that I have scheduled.  Maybe I'll get another later in the fall, but this shows how much I prefer the longer distances nowadays.  There's not much time to rest from this one, however, as I knock off state number ten next week!

Next race: Presque Isle Half Marathon- Erie, PA

Park 2 Park Half Marathon

We have had some amazingly mild weather for an Ohio summer.  I went out for a 15 miler right after work last Friday and did not overheat.  Pretty amazing for June and it's making it much easier to train for the Akron Marathon.  My thinking is that I'll run a half marathon each month during the build up (with a ten miler added in during August), so I added this small race in Sheffield, OH, just west of Cleveland.  It's a small race, with just over 100 runners, held at French Creek Reservation.  The course runs to another park, which I can't remember the name of, and back.  I was pretty psyched to get in a June half marathon.

But this is what awaited us on race morning.

Cats and dogs.  Downpour.  Delightful.  Thankfully, it stopped by the time we made it to the start line, but I would have rather had a light rain because the humidity rose like crazy late in the race.

We started off at 7:00 by making a small loop around the parking area (?) and then headed out via a crushed limestone trail.  The temps were perfect early on and I started out way too fast with a 7:25, 8:20, and 8:15 for the first three miles.  Now, I think the first mile was short, but this was still too fast for me.  The trails were surprisingly difficult in places with some hills.  The course was also pretty scenic with some nice bridges over streams and such.  I got into a battle with a few other runners that lasted a good 3-4 miles.  I finally passed them right after the turnaround point and started building a nice lead on them (they looked like they were in my age group).  It was an enjoyable first half and I clocked in at 57 minutes for the first seven miles.  Not bad at all!

Then the wheels came off.  The humidity was rising exponentially and I was feeling the effects of those fast early miles.  I took a gel and water at mile 8 and stretched out some.  I stole some glances behind me during the long straightaways and did not see anyone coming.  And there was nobody in front of me.  I decided I was probably safe to take the rest of the race easy and had a pretty good idea that I was currently third in my age group.  I sprinkled in some hard running with a few walk breaks for the rest of the race.  Splits were kind of hit-or-miss, but I was at 1:19 at the ten mile mark.  Still a very good time.

I just enjoyed the gorgeous sites during the last 3.1 miles and finally made my way back to the parking area for a finishing lap there.  It's pretty obvious that the last mile was short because I clocked in at just over six minutes for that mile.  No.  Way.  Crossed the finish line in 1:44:54 which is a very good time for me, though I'm guessing 1:47-1:48 is a more accurate time.

The biggest thing is that I was indeed third in my age group!  This is the first time I've placed in a half marathon.  You can tell that I was excited about my two medal day.

Goofball.

The postrace spread was pretty good for such a small race.  Plenty of fruit and water.  It was certainly refreshing.  I also got the chance to meet fellow blogger Jess, from the Run Jess Run blog!  Check out her journey to run 13 half marathons in 2013.  What a great goal.  We chatted about this race and our future races for the year.  Best of luck, Jess!

Then it was off to a terrific restaurant, the Harry Buffalo, for an amazing lunch.

Yes, that sandwich is buffalo chicken topped with mac and cheese.  It should be illegal but, thankfully, it is not.

My focus has shifted to the full marathon in September and I'm off to a great start.  A 15 miler followed by a good half marathon effort the next week gives me a lot of confidence.  It looks like I'll take another break from racing until mid-July.

Next race: Flirt with Dirt 5k- Findlay, OH

Run for the Camps 5k

I had to wait a couple days before posting this race report.  The excitement was too much and I was afraid the post would be incoherent if I wrote it right after the race.  Although, as regular readers know, this blog is less about solid writing and more about just getting my thoughts down for each race.

The race was held Sunday at beautiful Riverbend Park over in Findlay.  This really is a cool park and is much bigger than I thought.  My training leading to this race was surprisingly good considering I had just finished the Cap City Half two weeks prior.  I've been doing a lot of tough trail running at a local park and nailed a solid seven miler Friday evening before taking Saturday off.  In all honesty, I probably went that far because I just bought the New Balance GPS watch and wanted to take it for a spin.  I've also been sprinkling in some cross training at the local Y by using the elliptical and stationary bike.  I felt good going in and knew something in the 21 minute range would be realistic.  Keep in mind that 20:25 is my PR.

We started off with a long straightaway.  I came out of the gate faster than I meant to and found myself with the lead pack.  We made a turn about a half mile in and ran another long straightaway next to one of Findlay's reservoirs.  The first mile marker went by and I looked at my fancy new watch.  6:09?  What the heck?  I was shooting for a 6:30-6:40.  However, the first mile did measure a bit short, so I figure I was at 6:25 or so.  Still fast.  We turned soon after the mile marker and headed into a more woodsy area.  This was definitely more scenic, but I was so focused on the fact that I was running at a PR pace that I didn't pay much attention.  I slowed down some but still hit mile 2 in 12:39.  Ok.  This is definitely a PR attempt.  But I was feeling the effort and slowed just a bit in order to prepare for the last half mile.  I got into a battle with two other runners and edged one of them out with a half mile to go.  The finish line soon came into sight.  I looked at my watch, couldn't believe what I saw, and kicked into another gear for a solid finish and a new PR.  19:40!  The official results have me at a 19:42, placing 7/95 overall and third in my age group.  I never thought I would get a chance to finally break 20 minutes and I was thrilled to do so this early in the year.  Add it with the 10k PR I had in Fostoria last month and I've had a very good 2013.

I honestly still can't believe that I broke my 5k PR by so much, but I really need to focus on the rest of my summer training.  I'm trying to fit in a few summer half marathons to help me prepare for the Akron Marathon at the end of September.  My next race should certainly help.

Next race: Park 2 Park Half Marathon- Sheffield, OH

Capital City Half Marathon

This is my second time running the Capital City Half Marathon in Columbus.  I set a new PR at this race last year and had aspirations of running another solid race.  I always run well in Columbus (2010 Spirit of Columbus Half, 2011 Columbus Marathon, last year's Cap City Half), so I usually feel pretty confident going in to the race.  The weather certainly worked in my favor this year.  I remember sweating up a storm simply walking from my hotel to the start line last year.  It was miserable.  Thankfully it was in the mid-50s at the start this year, with a slight breeze at times.

The course was very similar to last year's, with a few minor (and positive) changes.  The race began after a moment of silence for the Boston Marathon victims and some "Sweet Caroline" thrown in for good measure.  I made my way to Corral A, as I had again earned the small thrill to start in the first corral like last year.  Hey, I'm not fast.  I'll take what victories I can get.  It took me roughly 30 seconds to make my way past the start line after the gun and we were off.  I came out at a faster pace than recent races.  My first mile was in 8:21, followed by 8:15 and 8:13 for the first three miles.  I felt good enough that a sub-2:00 was guaranteed and a sub-1:50 was a great possibility.  The course itself was similar to last year during these early miles.  We made our way up Front Street, then west on Vine, then north on Olentangy River Road.  There's not much to look at during these early miles, but this race is more about the middle miles as we began to make our way back to the city.

We went across the Lane Ave. bridge at the four mile mark (I was holding steady in the 8:10 range) and made our way through that part of campus.  The crowd support here is awesome!  It's not as great as the big Columbus Marathon, but still one of the better race experiences I've had.  Just shy of the 5 mile mark, we turned south on High Street.  This part of the course is both good and bad.  It's very cool to run through downtown Columbus in the middle of High St.  The crowd support is also amazing during this section.  But...we're on this stretch for three miles!  That's a long stretch during a half marathon!  We don't turn off until we hit Broad Street, just south of downtown.  That's just cruel.  My split times were still holding steady and I hit the halfway mark in about 53 minutes.

A tour of Columbus State Community College was next.  This was the first change I noticed from last year's course and it was great compared to last year's mileage going further out on Broad.  We then headed south for the German Village portion of the course.  I really liked this last year, but running on a brick street at mile 11 was just terrible last year.  But that was taken out this year, in favor for a portion around Schiller Park.  Very nice.  I also got a few laughs from spectators during this portion.  We ran by Cup o Joe and I yelled out "I'm coming back for you, Cup o Joe!"  That got some laughs.

Finally, we made our way back over to High Street for the uphill battle portion of this race.  I love race directors who finish their races with an uphill stretch.  Race directors have a wonderful sense of humor.  I pushed through and finished strong at 1:45:00.  I'll never be able to duplicate a 1:45 even.  It was a great race and my second fastest half marathon ever.  The post race was definitely better than last year, but they are still trying to fit too many people into one place.  The festivities were held at Columbus Commons again, which is fine, but the long line from the finish to the celebration is ridiculous.  It's about two city blocks and you do not have time, or space, to stretch out.  I understand that they need to keep the line moving, but I saw several volunteers trying to move people along who needed a breather.  Meh.  Not my favorite part of the race, but it is a rather minor complaint compared to everything else this race has going for it.

I'm very pleased with my time at this race.  My next half isn't until mid-June, so I signed up for a 5k in a couple weeks.  Oh, and I decided to take the plunge and sign up for my third marathon.  I'll be running the Akron Marathon on September 28!  Gulp...

Next race: 5k Run for the Camps- Findlay, OH

Hoover Hustle 10 Miler

I signed up for this race soon after the events at the Boston Marathon.  Many races around the country were experiencing record numbers of runners the week after the horrifying attacks.  In our own meager way, we were showing support for the people of Boston and showing that we will not change the way we live our lives.

This race was held at the Hoover Reservoir in Westerville, OH.  5k and 10k options were also available. It was the first ten miler I've ever entered and I decided to just take it easy and treat it like a training run.  After running a 10k PR the week prior and with the Cap City Half Marathon coming up, it really was my only option.

I arrived at the race an hour early (as always) and could not believe how cold it was for late April!  There was frost on the ground!  Most runners were staying in their cars until they absolutely had to get out.  So, seeing as I was treating this as nothing more than a training run, I decided I might as well be comfortable and threw on a long sleeve tech tee and my lightweight jacket from the Columbus Marathon.  I never wear that much in races, but it didn't look like I would be overheating.  The race started at the Bel Lago restaurant and ran along the reservoir for the first few miles.  There was little to no congestion because the other races started 15 minutes after ours.  I started off at a modest pace, hitting 9:21, 9:15, and 9:05 for the first three miles.  My legs were still feeling my 10k attempt from the previous week.  We crossed the dam during the third mile, which gave us a gorgeous view of the reservoir.  Most of the rest of the course meandered through some neighborhoods east of the lake.  The scenery wasn't bad and there were some nice hills to break up the race a bit.  Surprising, considering the Columbus area is, for the most part, flat.  I picked it up some during this stretch and began hitting sub-9:00 miles for the rest of the race.  My modest goal of finishing below 1:30 was well within reach.

There were some nice downhills on the way back to the dam, which we crossed again, on the way back to Bel Lago.  I was just over one hour at the seven mile mark and made the final push.  We made our way back the same exact way we came, so I knew what to expect.  I was able to catch a few people during this stretch, too.

Final time- 1:25:09       64/205 Overall

Not a bad effort for a last minute training race.  I normally could have come close to breaking 1:20.  The Capital City Half Marathon is in just under a week.  I am not expecting another PR effort like my last Cap City attempt, but the weather is certainly looking better than last year.  Early reports are looking at mid-50s when the race starts.  Compare that with the blistering heat and humidity of last year's race.

Next race: Capital City Half Marathon- Columbus, OH

Run the Res 10k

This past weekend was the Run the Res 10k in Fostoria, Ohio.  If you've been following the blog, you know about my aversion to 10ks.  I can't really explain it.  If I make a mistake in a 5k, I can get through it because it's just 3.1 miles.  But a mistake in a 10k can be disastrous.  The weird thing is that I had placed in my only 10k attempts (BOSS Summer Run in 2002, Ralph Wade in 2011, and Twin Creek Trail in 2012).  The reason I ran this one is because it was placed perfectly in between the Run the Bluegrass Half Marathon and Capital City Half Marathon.  Pretty perfect for training purposes.  My goal was simply to break 50 minutes.

The race started at 2pm at Community Park (I think that's right) in Fostoria.  The 5k option started at the same time as the 10k, which made it difficult pacing-wise.  I started out way too fast as we made our way around two of Fostoria's reservoirs.  It was a very pretty run and very flat for the first half or so.  The 5k runners definitely threw me off and I started out with a 7:19 for the first mile.  That's not far off from how I start 5ks, so I knew this would be tough.  We continued around the way we came and I was still picking people off as we hit the second mile marker.  I was still at 15 minutes and change, despite trying desperately to slow down. 

Finally, the 10k and 5k split up around 2.5 miles in the race.  We made our way up two bridges that consisted of major inclines.  I was finally able to assess the situation as I made my way down for a long straightaway heading outside of town.  There were some runners in front of me, but not many.  My best bet were two groups of two people each.  But they were up there a ways.  I hit the third mile marker in 23 minutes and change.  Still too fast, but at this point I was prepared for some pain.

The next few miles were very uneventful.  Two long straightaways on some country roads.  It did start raining lightly, which helped to cool things down some.  I passed the first group of two runners at the four mile mark.  Despite starting too fast, I still felt pretty good and looked to pick off the next two people.  The turnaround was just past the four mile mark and we made our way back to town.  I gained on the next two runners and caught up to them at the five mile mark, which I crossed in 38 minutes and change.  The second of the two challenged me for the next half mile, but I picked up the pace as we made our way up the bridge.  I'm a proponent of going hard on the uphills.  If you're passing someone, they'll see that you still have some strength left.  After that, it was the final push down the bridge and the last half mile to the finish line.  I crossed the finish in 45:35, good enough for a new 10k PR!

I didn't place in this race, but still finished a strong 14/64 overall.  Despite starting out too strong, this race taught me that I can a little harder in the early miles of future half marathons.

There were no plans for running a race this weekend, but I decided to sign up for one after the events in Boston on Monday.  I'm sure there will be plenty of runners there in support and I plan to use this one as an expensive training run for Capital City.  I urge you all to make donations to One Fund Boston and to keep those who were effected in your thoughts.

Next race: Hoover Hustle 10 Miler- Westerville, OH

Run the Bluegrass Half Marathon

This race, based on Lexington, Kentucky, is billed as one of America's prettiest half marathons.  This is absolutely an accurate description of the race.  It stars at Keeneland Thoroughbred Racing Assc. right outside of Lexington and winds through the (very) hilly back roads amid the local horse farms.  It is one of the toughest half marathons I've completed but also one of the prettiest.

I made the long trek to Lexington on Friday for packet pick up, which was also located at Keeneland.  It was a very cool race expo and, thankfully, I was able to get right in and right out.  I stayed pretty close to the race start and had no problem getting in on race day.  However, they capped the race at 5000 this year and I think that's as far as they should go.  Parking became an issue closer to race time and the race was actually delayed 15 minutes.  That was really the only negative for this year's race.  The weather was perfect, in the low-40s, so the delayed start wasn't a major deal.

We headed out from Keeneland and I immediately set into a nice nine minute pace.  I had heard several people say that the second half of the course was tougher than the first and, judging by the first few tough hills, I wanted to save plenty of gas for the second half.  The scenery was fantastic.  Nice rolling hills.  Horse farms on each side of the road.  Some of the gorgeous thoroughbreds came to the fence line to watch us.  That was quite the experience.  Race-wise I felt pretty good.  My 3 mile split was around 26:52, which is right where I wanted to be.  I did speed up some by the time I hit the halfway mark, which was in 58:20.

The second half started right in with tough, tough hills!  Up, down, up, down for miles 6-9.  There were a lot of rollers, but the downhills really started to kill my quads.  But I was still doing well and hit the 10 mile mark in 1:26:40.  My sub-2:00 streak was going to survive and I decided to just coast and enjoy the scenery.  This course certainly doesn't have much crowd support but it isn't needed at all.  The race actually leveled out a bit over the last few miles, so I wound up speeding up just a bit and hit the finish line in 1:52:18.  As I saw this race as a major challenge, I'm very happy with this time.

Next race: Run the Reservoir- Fostoria, OH