Red White and Boom Half Marathon - July 4, 2016

It's been over 11 weeks since my last race, but not by design.  The left calf cramp/strain issues I experienced in my first two races took longer than I hoped to heal.  I badly wanted to run the Medtronic TC 1 mile on May 12th, but decided to skip the race for precautionary reasons.  My injury was much improved, but knowing the TC1 would be a short, fast, uptempo race, I just didn't want to risk blowing it out again.

My next scheduled race was the Minneapolis Half Marathon on June 5th.  However the race was cancelled right before the event, due to a conflict with the race course permit.  Apparently a section of the course was impacted by mudslide that happened several months ago and the city is still working on road repairs there.  But it forced the city of Minneapolis to refuse approval of the course permit, asking that race organizers to come back with an alternative for that section of the course.  Race organizers dragged their feet too long and eventually had no choice but to cancel the event.  This was a large race impacting thousands of participants.  I place full blame on the race organizers, as the city gave them more than enough time to find an alternative for the city to approve.  

Which brings me to today's race.  I registered for all my races in January.  At that time, a 4th of July race sounded really nice and cozy.  The weather was actually quite nice considering that heat and humidity is not foreign to even Minnesota this time of year.  It was 64 degrees at the start of the race (6:30am) and about 70 degrees at the finish line (8:00am), with sunny sky's and light winds.  This was an early morning race.  A very early morning race.  I got up at 4:30am, arrived at the race site by 5:30am and got warmed up and ready to go by 6:30am.

My left calf injury is feeling fine again now, however I didn't enter this race with a great deal of confidence.  I was a bit worried that running again at race pace may potentially re-aggravate the injury, as it's been 11+ weeks since I've run extended miles at race pace.  Not the confidence builder I am looking for coming into this race.  I figured my best approach was to go out at a moderate half marathon pace initially and take it from there.  The last thing I wanted to have happen is another calf aggravation early in the race and then have to gut it out for another 10 miles or so.  If that happened, I figured I would likely drop out, rather than try to run uptempo for that distance, risking serious injury.    

Today's race began near downtown Minneapolis on the along the Mississippi River on West River Parkway just west of the Stone Arch Bridge.  From there, the course headed west on Plymouth Avenue, then north on Theodore Wirth Parkway.  Then north and eventually east on Victory Memorial Drive back to the river.  From there it followed the river south back to the finish line on the northeast end of the Stone Arch Bridge.

My intention was to run the first few miles at a moderate half marathon race pace around 7 minutes/mile, but my Garmin was registering an 8 minute mile pace across the first 3 miles.  After 9 years of running, I have a good sense for what my pace is without the assistance of a Garmin and I felt like I was running 7 minute miles.  By mile 3 I was so discouraged with my race pace that I just wanted to get tot he finish line and call it a day.  Going into this race I had no aspirations of competing for one of my top half marathon times, but I also wasn't anticipating my race pace to be this slow either.  I didn't realize that my Garmin was malfunctioning.  I've never had problems with it in the 9 years I've used Garmin's.  But for some reason, it chose to malfunction during my race today.  My total time was spot on to the second with the race clock, but my Garmin was over-extending my mile splits early in the race, which is why my pace was registering slower than it actually was.  In hindsight I should have questioned this, but I wrongly assumed it was accurate.  I figured the 11 week race layoff had a bigger impact on my ability to race today than I expected.

Eventually, my Garmin began measuring miles correctly, but my overall distance and pace was messed up because of the early miles.  When I crossed the finish line, my Garmin reflected a distance of 12.5 miles total vs. the 13.1 miles I actually ran.  So my actual race time/pace was faster (7:11/mile) than I thought I was running, but still well off my top 10 half marathon times.  I finished with a time of 1:33;58, good for 89th place among 2,266 finishers and 3rd in my age group among 68.  It felt good to finally get another race under my belt, but I also want to get back to my true racing form.  My time today was almost 4 minutes slower than average half marathon times.  Hopefully I can get back on track in time for my next race which is also a half marathon - the Urban Wildland in Richfield on August 6th.          

Results:
http://www.mtecresults.com/runner/show?race=4176&rid=1132

Hot Chocolate 5k - April 16, 2016

The Hot Chocolate 5k falls into the same category as many current day running events.  Events designed to appeal to the thousands upon thousands of runners who run for exercise, but may not necessarily consider themselves a competitive runner.  Many are new to the sport, or simply enjoy getting together with a group of running friends to have a good time.  These events advertise like crazy and offer "extras" to the participants like racing jackets etc.  It works.  Over 4,000 runners ran today's 5k event.  Larger participant races are certainly more exciting to run than smaller events and are typically well organized to effectively manage the large number of participants, or major chaos would ensue.  With these large participation races, there inevitably will be a group of competitive runners too.  Just not the depth of race competition you find at more established "no frill" race events.

My Dad passed away last week and his funeral will take place later this afternoon.  I debated all week if I should run this race.  But the race was early morning and didn't interfere with family or funeral plans.  It was a short race and one I had already registered for back in January.  After much consideration, I decided it would be a good mental break for me, if just momentary.  My training became secondary this week, as other priorities obviously took center stage.  I was also coming off a two week cold/virus issue that hit me hard.  This casual/fun race was probably just what I needed this morning and about all my body could handle, both mentally and physically.  

It was a beautiful and unseasonably warm April morning in the Twin Cities.  Sunny, 63 degrees, with a 10mph breeze.  The race course utilized the same real-estate as my race last month.  The course loops counter-clockwise around Boom and Nicollet Island by the Mississippi River, utilizing the Plymouth Avenue and Stone Arch bridges as the cross-overs.  The last half mile of this 5k includes a steady climb toward the finish line, making for a tough finish.    

As the race began, I settled into a nice pace.  Runner traffic quickly thinned out and I soon felt like I was all alone as I approached the first mile marker.  I ran a strong first mile (6:15) and I felt like I was in good position to run a competitive time today.  I felt the same way in last month's race before popping a muscle in my left calf a little over half way through the race.

I found myself focusing on my fatigue during the second mile.  Something that easily happens when you don't have much runner traffic around you to compete against and you find yourself running alone.  I was almost across the Stone Arch Bridge, approaching the cobblestone section when the same muscle in my left calf popped again just before the two mile mark.  Immediately my pace and tempo became all muddled up, as I tried to find a stride that minimized the sharp and sudden pain I was experiencing.  Every time I tried to increase my speed, the pain forced me to slow back down.  I ran a 6:30 second mile, 15 seconds slower than my first.

I was once again in survival mode, with the toughest mile remaining.  Several times I tried to find a comfortable stride closer to my target race pace, but the pain was too severe.  Some strides were tolerable, but other strides resulted in a shooting pain that took my breath away.  I could feel myself slowing down more and more, just wishing the finish line was in sight.  I was exhausted, as there was nothing positive going on to fuel my adrenaline and push myself through the final section of this race.  I ran the third mile about 45 seconds slower than my first mile.    

I finished with a time of 20:26, good for 10th place among 4,231 finishers overall and first in my age group of 50 runners.  I obviously placed well among all runners, but this was not a highly competitive race.  My race time was too slow to even crack my list of top 10 - 5k's.  My next race is the Medtronic TC 1 Mile, the evening of  May 12th.  My left calf issue has now derailed both of my races this year.  Hopefully I can work through this issue so it doesn't become a chronic issue that plagues my race season this year.

Results:
http://ramracing.enmotive.com/results/index/eventid?src=hc-city-landing-2&_ga=1.74077778.1517564399.1450896718

Team Ortho Get Lucky 7k - March 12, 2016

The Get Lucky 7k officially kicked of my 2016 race season today.  This is the 4th time I've run this race, having last run it in 2014.  I couldn't have asked for better weather for a Minnesota race this time of year.  Unseasonably warm (55 degrees at race time) with clear skies and an 8mph SSW breeze.

I had a clean, uneventful winter training wise.  I got my miles in, with no injuries and no health related setbacks.  I successfully completed 8 straight weeks of stride, tempo and ladder work as planned.  So feeling good, feeling confident heading into the seasons first race.  This will also be my last season running in the 50's age group as one of the old guys at 59.  Next year I graduate to the 60's age group as one of the youngsters.

The Get Lucky is basically a "party theme/costume" race for many of the participants and the race distance (7k) is fairly non-standard as races go.  But I really like this race for several reasons.  First, the course is fair and relatively fast.  There are two hill climbs, but not killer climbs.  The last mile is a good finishing mile.  Flat to slightly downhill.  The worst part of the course is that the second mile is run on cobblestones.  I don't like the cobblestones, so I try to run that section on the cement gutter near the curb.  The other reason I like this race is the location.  Downtown Minneapolis is more race friendly than Downtown St Paul with regard to parking locations near the start of a race.

The St. Patrick's Day theme brings out thousands of casual runners looking for a social event and a good time.  But there are about 500 runners who actually run this race competitively.  But it's the kind of race that doesn't attract any of the top runners around the state.   It's important to start near the front, or you will find yourself stuck behind thousands of people dressed in varying degrees of green costume, who may have already used their free drink coupon before the start of the race.  The race is chip timed for each runner, but failing to start near the front will be be a severe handicap, trying to fight through a never ending sea of slower runners who are simply there to have a good time.  Don't get me wrong.  The race participants are very nice, friendly people.  They just have a different objective in mind for this race, which they are certainly entitled to.  This is obviously why the race draws thousands of people each year.  

Anyway, my race started out just fine.  I completed the first two miles right on my 6:20/mile target pace and experienced no issues through the cobblestone section in mile two.  However during the third mile I suffered a sudden and severe left calf strain, which immediately put me on the defensive.  I shortened my stride out of necessity, while quickly evaluating how serious the injury was and how hard I could push the rest of the way without risking further damage.  The pain was intense through mile three and I lost about 20 seconds to my per mile pace.  By the time I got to mile four, the pain had subsided to a degree, or I was just getting used to the discomfort.  I gave it my best effort, but was unable to recapture my original race pace again.

I finished with a time of 28:29, which is my slowest time among the 4 Get Lucky races I've now run.  My best time (in 2014) was 51 seconds faster (27:38) and I haven't run slower that 28 minutes flat until today.  I'm disappointed with my time, because I felt like I wasted a great opportunity to run a strong race on a beautiful, late winter day.  I felt like I was in a position to challenge my best time in this race.  But I realize the injury lead to my demise and I ran as well as I could considering the unexpected setback during the race.

I finished in 14th place overall among 6,045 finishers and 1st in my age group of  198 finishers.  My next race is the Hot Chocolate 5k in Minneapolis on April 16th.  This is another large participant event with a "fun" theme behind it.  It's a relatively new race that fit my race calendar both from a timing standpoint as well as race distance I wanted to run next.  Hopefully my calf strain will heal quickly and not bother me as the year progresses.

Race Results:
http://www.mtecresults.com/runner/show?rid=10760&race=3867