Race #186
Half Marathon #68
2021 Race #2
2021 Half Marathon #2
South Carolina Half Marathon #49
Mountains to Main Street Half Marathon #3
Originally I had planned to make this a sub-1:50 half marathon, as close to 1:45 as I could as a step towards a half marathon PR. After a month off from dedicated training thanks to Covid and recovery afterwards and then a lack of pep in my step for several of my track sessions, I pulled back from hard and fast goals even though they hovered in the background as I anticipated this race.
Mom did not run this race with me since I registered for last year’s race which got postponed until this year. Instead, she dropped me off near the start, Trailblazer Park in Travelers Rest and then drove downtown. After parking, she ran on her own for a few miles before heading to the finish to meet me.
I walked up to the start and stood off to the side while someone sang the National Anthem and the first couple “corrals” started. I honestly do not understand why this is such a hard concept for southern runners/race organizers to understand. Another complicating factor is the CDC’s new guidelines for fully vaccinated people, of which I am one, in conjunction to many of my fellow South Carolinian’s refusal to follow common sense guidelines and actually believe the science. (That dilemma merits its own post but will likely not get one.)
Although my registration put me in corral 4, I jumped in with corral 3 right before they started.
I remembered the course vaguely from previous years, although the first three miles had some slight alterations this year. That vague memory combined with the announcer’s reminder of the difficulties to come helped me prepare for the incredibly hilly first three miles.
What I could not prepare for was the massive confusion that came a little before the first mile. (I do not remember the exact mileage since for some reason this race did not have a single mile marker on the course.) We headed into a subdivision to make a loop that would bring us back around and on our way to the Swamp Rabbit Trail for the remainder of the race. I noticed some arrows on the ground indicating the opposite direction of our turn right as I saw a group of people heading back towards us. Remembering the loop nature, I figured that the arrows indicated the direction we needed to turn after completing the loop. Then everyone in the massive group, no time to thin out, shouted “wrong way!” Massive confusion ensued. I ran a few steps before turning around with everyone else and hoping that we hadn’t made a giant mistake.
Since the race had no mile markers, I had no idea how much over or short my total mileage would end up. Since I had started with corral 3, I gained only an extra tenth but definitely lost some momentum.
I discovered in the post race email that the cause of the “wrong turn” came from the lead vehicle making a wrong turn. I want to shout out the organizers because they offered 50% off the entries for everyone that got led in the wrong direction. (The email stated first and second corrals but I started at the front of the third and likely caught up to the back of the second corral by the time the turn around occurred.) At the time I kept thinking that the whole turn around actually added more miles than if we had just kept running. When we came around and ran the exact same section that we had run a little before turning around, my suspicious were confirmed. It was an exact loop. All the lead vehicle needed to do was keep going. We would not have added any mileage. Oy vey.
Mile 1 – 8:20
The next two miles held significant hills. I had switched my Garmin screen over to the one with the pace displayed so I could check periodically like I had during track sessions. (I did not look at total time until stopping my watch after crossing the finish line.) I knew that the hills ahead posed a significant challenge and that pushing to maintain my goal pace of 8:24 on those hills would prove counterproductive for later miles of the race. Instead, I focused on effort and powered through.
Mile 2 – 8:09 (I had some downhill in this section which cancelled out some slower paces on the hills)
Mile 3 – 8:30
Knowing that I had not practiced eating my fuel while running at that pace, I planned to walk while I ate the chews so that I would not have to juggle fueling with breathing. I did not walk long, only a few hundredths, before I returned to running.
I felt good through this section although a little voice in my head tried to start up with the doubt that I would have the ability to maintain this pace for the rest of the half, something I haven’t done for quite some time. Instead of listening, I banished that voice and replaced it with thoughts of maintaining that pace for as long as I could and making the decision on anything else when I could no longer hold that pace.
Some time during the 5th or 6th mile – remember, no mile markers – I passed an aid station and grabbed a gel. I do not even remember which brand they provided. While I used to use gels exclusively since I find them so much easier to consume while running quicker, I do not like the texture and had started anticipate disliking the flavor even before opening the package. I had my chews with me but not enough to eat two every three miles. I told myself that I would survive skipping the chews at mile 12 but on the spur of the moment I decided to try one of the gels so I could space out the remaining chews. Thankfully, I have an “iron stomach” which does not tend to get bothered by food of pretty much any type while on the run.
Since I had the gel, I consumed that after finishing mile 6 and kept running, no slowing down to walk.
Mile 4 – 8:45 (this includes the short walk break to eat the chews)
Mile 5 – 8:17
Mile 6 – 8:16
Most of the middle miles form a blur in my memory. I remember appreciating the beauty of the Swamp Rabbit Trail, trying to pass as many male runners as I could, periodically checking my Garmin to see my pace. Since I did not stare at the Garmin, these periodic checks gave my mind the impression that my average pace was about 15-20 second slower than I anticipated. My math on the run gets fuzzy. I did not get disheartened. Instead, I knew that an average 8:30 pace or close to there would signal improvement in my fitness and a step in the right direction.
MIle 7 – 8:13
Mile 8 – 8:22
Mile 9 – 8:15
After completing mile 9, I did slow to a brief walk to eat my chews but it must not have taken me that long because the average pace (shown below) did not drop much below my goal pace of 8:24.
Around this time I could definitely feel the fatigue in my legs. I knew I was putting in the work but I also knew that I could continue. It had not reached the breaking point yet. Of course I wanted to finish but I knew I could get there. I did not know at what pace but I knew I would get there.
Each time a mile would click off, I found myself surprised that I had arrived before my music ran out. Prior to getting my new phone, the shuffle feature on my running playlist put the playlist on an apparently infinite loop. The new phone goes through the playlist once before waiting for you to start it again. On long runs with Mom, that point usually comes around 10 miles so I challenged myself to see how far I could get before the playlist ended. I expected around 11 miles but got to almost 12!
Mile 10 – 8:33 (includes fueling)
Mile 11 – 8:20
Mile 12 – 8:17
In the waning meters of mile 12, (yes, I know I mixed measurement systems there) I considered running through that fuel since only a little over a mile remained. I did not know how much distance the “wrong turn” at the beginning had added but having run the Swamp Rabbit so many times, I could tell by that point that it had not added that much.
I forgot about the detour, however. Close to downtown, near the Kroc Center, a small section of the trail has been completely demolished as the area undergoes construction for a new public park. Thus the trail takes a detour up to the street and then back down to rejoin the original trail. This detour includes a lovely hill that just past mile 12 in a half marathon does not feel kind. I had gone past the 12 mile split, according to my watch, but decided to slow to a walk on a portion of that uphill to eat the last chews and catch a little bit of a breather.
I could definitely feel the work I had put in at that point. My calves were already starting to ache. (As of Sunday, they remain significantly tight but improving.) I slowed much more than the other two brief breaks I had earlier in the race. I knew I could finish through and finished the rest of the hill attempting to get as close back to goal pace as I could, telling myself just to give a good effort and finish the half mile in front of me. I found myself pleasantly surprised that I quickly got back to goal pace although it did not feel anything near as effortless as earlier.
Mile 13 – 9:02 (my only 9 minute mile!)
As much as the underpass comes in handy to avoid car traffic, I really hate the sharp hair pin turn right as the final meters of the race begin. This time, as I came out from under the bridge, I heard Mom call out from the other side of the river. That gave me a nice boost of motivation.
After making the turn, I saw a photographer taking photos which I correctly assumed to be official race photos and attempted to smile.
Definitely in the pain cave. Also, what sort of official race photographer has a camera not designed for sports mode, aka without the ability to capture images of objects in motion without blurring? (See my right hand in the first two.)
Mom took more photos of me as I passed. Well, technically she took videos on accident but I grabbed screenshots of those that turned out better than the official ones.
As I rounded the corner to head to the finish line, I really wanted to pour on a sprint. My legs did not have that much left though. I sped up as much as I could and finished strong.
After stopping my Garmin, I looked down to see 1:50 on the summary screen. I could barely believe it! My mind had imagined a 1:55 finish give or take a minute or so. I love surprising myself positively with my performance.
.19 nubbin – 8:15 (only approximately a tenth too long)
Total time – 1:50:53 (not too shabby)
Without the turn around and confusion, I might have made it under 1:50. Without the detour and the hill, I might have gotten really close to 1:50 had I stayed at the pace I held prior to that.
That being said, however, I nailed my goal pace, 8:24 to the exact second. I will take that for sure.
Although I do not feel completely beat up after the race, I know that I raced the whole thing as fast as I possibly could. If I had attempted a pace even 10 seconds faster, I probably would have depleted the tank before I reached the finish line. My training, even derailed, set me up for an 8:24 pace for the half. Even though I did not nail all of the workouts I attempted, I stayed consistent with the work. This leaves me hopeful for Chicago, especially since I have this base to build on, the equipment to start incorporating power lifting into the training plan, and the summer to start building the habits to carry into the fall and beyond.