Time to bring an old post back from the dead, because I can finally put this one down because it is finally happening!
My first half-marathon, just as intended, is starting right in my hometown. Figured it would be as good a place as any, and I know the event itself is pretty large. If you're not familiar with the Rock & Roll series, they are good at organizing races that have bands intermittently strung out throughout the race, playing various kinds of music, serving as motivation to get through the race. Fortunately or unfortunately, this is the last time that Rock & Roll is going to be in Raleigh as they decided not to bring it back. I figure it's due to lack of participation as the numbers looks to have been dwindling since they first came to town. Business decisions suck sometimes, but you gotta do what you gotta do.
My first half-marathon is providing a lot of other firsts for me. To start, it would be my first time visiting an Expo prior to the race. We were required to pick up our bibs ahead of time. I brought my wife with me to the Expo.
After picking up the bibs, I went to pick up my race shirt. It's a nice looking and feeling Brooks shirt and I posted a picture of it below. For now, it'll be my short-sleeve racing shirt since it feels like the best quality of the shirts I have and because I'm tired of wearing my zombie race shirt from back in 2011. I've come a long way since then.
We wandered through the Expo, signing up for a few contests even though I know that giving away my information will result in future solicitations for God-knows-what. Oh well, I've accepted that it's the price I have to pay if I want a chance to win free things. We also made a few purchases, starting with cute little Brooks shirts for my kids that state 'I want to run like you when I grow up '. My wife wanted to get the shirts since it was my first half-marathon; I obliged, figuring they can wear them when they come with me on some of my other running exploits until they grow out of them.
I also bought some body glide as the last two long runs leading up to the race had me chafing and in some pain after the run. I wanted to make sure I got myself ahead of any future issues. I also got sold on getting a heat gel pad that warms up once you crack a disc on the inside of it and the chemical reaction makes the gel solidify and heat up. I was sold on the amount of heat it could create and the fact that it was reusable. Ended up picking up another for my wife's grandmother as a future Christmas gift. I also got a free little belt/wrap that I can put the gel pack in and velcro to whatever part of the body I need.
We also picked up various types of free swag. I figured I'd go ahead and post them here and give a little credit to the makers of said products:
Rock & Roll cinch bag
Spry gum - spearmint and peppermint flavors
Lundberg Farms thin stackers red rice & quinoa puffed grain cakes
Lundberg Farms grounded snacks organic red rice and quinoa tortilla chips - pink himalayan salt and aged white cheddar flavors
Xlear nasal spray
Shave Secret shaving oil
Calmoseptine ointment
DrTuggle.com Tri-Mag cleanse natural constipation relief
Estrella PM sleeping pills
The expo over, now it was time to prepare for tomorrow's race! The forecast was set to be in the thirties and maybe break the forties by the end of the race. I knew I'd have to change my outfit as a result and opted to go with my red Nike long-sleeved hoodie shirt to go with my black Adidas running shorts. I honestly don't care enough about brands to try and be coordinated from a shirt/short perspective. Everything was set aside as I prepped for tomorrow, figuring that I'd have to get up extra early and arrive early before they start shutting down roads and I can't get to the right parking lots.
It's 5AM I must be crazy. I'm up before the crack of dawn, hop in the shower, put on my gear, and make my way downtown where I decided to park in the same deck I normally use when I go to work. There weren't a lot of cars around, which was a bit of a surprise. I had assumed that several floors would be filled up. I texted my wife that there was plenty of space to park later and hung in the car until about 6:30 AM.
It was cold and I couldn't imagine spending the next thirty minutes standing around outside. I walked inside the Sheraton and stayed warm like many other folks, only getting around to lining up outside about five minutes before the race start. I found my corral, got into place and let the music and the anticipation pump me up.
Soon it was go time! I went deliberately slow and had several folks pass me as I understood that most folks make the mistake of running too fast. I found my rhythm and ignored everyone else as I raced my race. Looking back, I don't think there was anyone that stood out as someone I could use as a pacer.
Before mile 2, I felt some discomfort in my right knee. I thought it was just a matter of it being stiff due to the cold and I tried to shake it out. I wasn't going to let a little bit of discomfort stop me, I just chugged along and did my thing.
Since my neighborhood is basically a golf community, I had the advantage of running a lot of hills throughout my training. It paid off dearly for me here. Every hill, some folks slowed to a crawl or even stopped to walk. I'd keep going the same speed, churning through hills and passing folks left and right. I felt like a machine.
At the first station to get some gel, I picked it up and basically spent the next quarter to a half mile draining the contents. I felt like sipping would make my stomach less angry than trying to gulp down quickly. It was an orange flavored gel that I found to pretty good. Either way, considering how I performed for the race, I'm happy with the decision to sip and run and will do that for future races.
That discomfort in my knee really started to act up after mile 8. When I stopped at the second station for gel, I tried to extend my leg, wriggle my knee, trying to figure out what was going on. Didn't pause for long, resumed my run.
It was sometime around mile 12 where I really could feel my legs aching. Considering that leading up to my training, I didn't do more than 10 miles, I knew that the last three would likely be the most grueling for me. They felt like lead, and I realized that if I wanted to lengthen my stride, I couldn't. Still, knowing I was a mile away, I just told myself I was twelve minutes from finishing. Just a little longer. Just before the end of the race, I could feel my legs buckle on me a bit. Yup, they were spent. I wasn't even winded from a breathing perspective, having spent the entire race just breathing through my nose like it was no big thing.
I told myself I'd likely yell or do something once I crossed the finish. Nope, I was just relieved that I was done. I looked around for my family and saw them just past the finish line. I got my medal, took a picture, then went and saw them and chatted for a bit before I moved again to pick up some Gatorade, chocolate milk, pretzels, and a banana. Now that I had stopped moving, my legs let me know that they were pretty beat.
When I first planned on running this race, my initial goal was to just finish the thing. As I trained, I had a higher goal to try and finish the race without stopping to walk. Further into my training, I thought that maybe if it was close, I might try to finish under 2:30. When I checked my time, I was thrilled to find that I beat my goals. I finished my race, I never stopped, and I clocked in at 2:24:xx, which basically translated to an 11:00 mile. 11! I thought I'd be closer to a 12:00 mile. Even as I trained, I was consistently around 11:30. I know with people around, folks go a little faster and do a little better. Credit to the folks around me then, because I pushed myself to do better than I imagined.
Post run, I made it home, hopped in the shower, and went to church. I spent the rest of the day agonizing about how much my legs hurt. Didn't stop me from working the grill, lifting bags of mulch out of a trailer, and trying to watch my kids. Still, I whined and moaned and crawled up the stairs because my legs refused to cooperate. A few days later, I'm still sore, but I feel good that I'm healing up quicker than anticipated. I'll still rest an entire week before I consider doing any running.
I'm so glad I got the monkey off my back. I felt like the first race would be the hardest. Hopefully the rest start to fall like dominoes. 3 weeks from now, I'll cross my second state off the list and run in the Delaware running festival. Let's go!
My first half-marathon, just as intended, is starting right in my hometown. Figured it would be as good a place as any, and I know the event itself is pretty large. If you're not familiar with the Rock & Roll series, they are good at organizing races that have bands intermittently strung out throughout the race, playing various kinds of music, serving as motivation to get through the race. Fortunately or unfortunately, this is the last time that Rock & Roll is going to be in Raleigh as they decided not to bring it back. I figure it's due to lack of participation as the numbers looks to have been dwindling since they first came to town. Business decisions suck sometimes, but you gotta do what you gotta do.
My first half-marathon is providing a lot of other firsts for me. To start, it would be my first time visiting an Expo prior to the race. We were required to pick up our bibs ahead of time. I brought my wife with me to the Expo.
After picking up the bibs, I went to pick up my race shirt. It's a nice looking and feeling Brooks shirt and I posted a picture of it below. For now, it'll be my short-sleeve racing shirt since it feels like the best quality of the shirts I have and because I'm tired of wearing my zombie race shirt from back in 2011. I've come a long way since then.
We wandered through the Expo, signing up for a few contests even though I know that giving away my information will result in future solicitations for God-knows-what. Oh well, I've accepted that it's the price I have to pay if I want a chance to win free things. We also made a few purchases, starting with cute little Brooks shirts for my kids that state 'I want to run like you when I grow up '. My wife wanted to get the shirts since it was my first half-marathon; I obliged, figuring they can wear them when they come with me on some of my other running exploits until they grow out of them.
I also bought some body glide as the last two long runs leading up to the race had me chafing and in some pain after the run. I wanted to make sure I got myself ahead of any future issues. I also got sold on getting a heat gel pad that warms up once you crack a disc on the inside of it and the chemical reaction makes the gel solidify and heat up. I was sold on the amount of heat it could create and the fact that it was reusable. Ended up picking up another for my wife's grandmother as a future Christmas gift. I also got a free little belt/wrap that I can put the gel pack in and velcro to whatever part of the body I need.
We also picked up various types of free swag. I figured I'd go ahead and post them here and give a little credit to the makers of said products:
Rock & Roll cinch bag
Spry gum - spearmint and peppermint flavors
Lundberg Farms thin stackers red rice & quinoa puffed grain cakes
Lundberg Farms grounded snacks organic red rice and quinoa tortilla chips - pink himalayan salt and aged white cheddar flavors
Xlear nasal spray
Shave Secret shaving oil
Calmoseptine ointment
DrTuggle.com Tri-Mag cleanse natural constipation relief
Estrella PM sleeping pills
The expo over, now it was time to prepare for tomorrow's race! The forecast was set to be in the thirties and maybe break the forties by the end of the race. I knew I'd have to change my outfit as a result and opted to go with my red Nike long-sleeved hoodie shirt to go with my black Adidas running shorts. I honestly don't care enough about brands to try and be coordinated from a shirt/short perspective. Everything was set aside as I prepped for tomorrow, figuring that I'd have to get up extra early and arrive early before they start shutting down roads and I can't get to the right parking lots.
It's 5AM I must be crazy. I'm up before the crack of dawn, hop in the shower, put on my gear, and make my way downtown where I decided to park in the same deck I normally use when I go to work. There weren't a lot of cars around, which was a bit of a surprise. I had assumed that several floors would be filled up. I texted my wife that there was plenty of space to park later and hung in the car until about 6:30 AM.
It was cold and I couldn't imagine spending the next thirty minutes standing around outside. I walked inside the Sheraton and stayed warm like many other folks, only getting around to lining up outside about five minutes before the race start. I found my corral, got into place and let the music and the anticipation pump me up.
Soon it was go time! I went deliberately slow and had several folks pass me as I understood that most folks make the mistake of running too fast. I found my rhythm and ignored everyone else as I raced my race. Looking back, I don't think there was anyone that stood out as someone I could use as a pacer.
Before mile 2, I felt some discomfort in my right knee. I thought it was just a matter of it being stiff due to the cold and I tried to shake it out. I wasn't going to let a little bit of discomfort stop me, I just chugged along and did my thing.
Since my neighborhood is basically a golf community, I had the advantage of running a lot of hills throughout my training. It paid off dearly for me here. Every hill, some folks slowed to a crawl or even stopped to walk. I'd keep going the same speed, churning through hills and passing folks left and right. I felt like a machine.
At the first station to get some gel, I picked it up and basically spent the next quarter to a half mile draining the contents. I felt like sipping would make my stomach less angry than trying to gulp down quickly. It was an orange flavored gel that I found to pretty good. Either way, considering how I performed for the race, I'm happy with the decision to sip and run and will do that for future races.
That discomfort in my knee really started to act up after mile 8. When I stopped at the second station for gel, I tried to extend my leg, wriggle my knee, trying to figure out what was going on. Didn't pause for long, resumed my run.
It was sometime around mile 12 where I really could feel my legs aching. Considering that leading up to my training, I didn't do more than 10 miles, I knew that the last three would likely be the most grueling for me. They felt like lead, and I realized that if I wanted to lengthen my stride, I couldn't. Still, knowing I was a mile away, I just told myself I was twelve minutes from finishing. Just a little longer. Just before the end of the race, I could feel my legs buckle on me a bit. Yup, they were spent. I wasn't even winded from a breathing perspective, having spent the entire race just breathing through my nose like it was no big thing.
I told myself I'd likely yell or do something once I crossed the finish. Nope, I was just relieved that I was done. I looked around for my family and saw them just past the finish line. I got my medal, took a picture, then went and saw them and chatted for a bit before I moved again to pick up some Gatorade, chocolate milk, pretzels, and a banana. Now that I had stopped moving, my legs let me know that they were pretty beat.
When I first planned on running this race, my initial goal was to just finish the thing. As I trained, I had a higher goal to try and finish the race without stopping to walk. Further into my training, I thought that maybe if it was close, I might try to finish under 2:30. When I checked my time, I was thrilled to find that I beat my goals. I finished my race, I never stopped, and I clocked in at 2:24:xx, which basically translated to an 11:00 mile. 11! I thought I'd be closer to a 12:00 mile. Even as I trained, I was consistently around 11:30. I know with people around, folks go a little faster and do a little better. Credit to the folks around me then, because I pushed myself to do better than I imagined.
Post run, I made it home, hopped in the shower, and went to church. I spent the rest of the day agonizing about how much my legs hurt. Didn't stop me from working the grill, lifting bags of mulch out of a trailer, and trying to watch my kids. Still, I whined and moaned and crawled up the stairs because my legs refused to cooperate. A few days later, I'm still sore, but I feel good that I'm healing up quicker than anticipated. I'll still rest an entire week before I consider doing any running.
I'm so glad I got the monkey off my back. I felt like the first race would be the hardest. Hopefully the rest start to fall like dominoes. 3 weeks from now, I'll cross my second state off the list and run in the Delaware running festival. Let's go!
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