Philly Distance Run

Gun:	5k	10k	10M	Finish	OverAll	Gender	Division
Chip:	23:21	46:24	1:14:26	1:36:50	963	811	144
Race Pace:	7:31	7:28	7:27	7:24	11080	5725	763
Lap Pace:	7:31	7:26	7:25	7:13	Place / Total

Ran in my second PDR this morning. The race went roughly according to plan, albeit more slowly than I sketched out last week.

Pre Race: I wanted to empty my bladder, but after checking my bag, running a light warmup, and finding my way to the toilets, I was afraid I'd miss the start so I jumped out of line and into a corral.

Mile 1: typically bunched start for a run with 12,000 runners. First mile down the Parkway in 7:30.

Mile 2: picked up the pace for the bend around Penn's landing, 7:15. Thankful for sunglasses for the east segment. Stomach feels like a rock after last night's burritos (why oh why did we eat burritos?). Bladder also feeling full.

Mile 3: Chugging back up towards the Ben Franklin Parkway, another 7:20ish mile. Feeling better, wondering if I can just run through the knots in my stomach and full bladder.

Mile 4: Feeling good and the little uphill up to the art museum finally spreads the field up. I hitch on to the back of someone faster than me and we kick up the pace around to W River Dr. Then he kicks it up again and I let him go.

Mile 5: Burrito/bladder cramps return. Sear into my brain that beans are not good pre-race food. Slow it back down to 7:30ish to see if that will help.

Mile 6: Something malfunctions with my watch, so I don't know splits after this. Cramps are coming and going, but starting to believe I can just run through. Find a nice pack of people ro run with at what appears to be 7:15 pace. Enjoying the rhythm and having some company rather than just passing people.

Mile 7: Still chugging away, grab some water.

Mile 8: Approaching the Strawberry Mansion bridge and my mind wants to pick up the pace but bladder is killing me. Zip into the woods for a whiz which loses me 30-40 seconds. Run hard for the next mile and catch the gang I was running with by the mile marker.

Mile 9: Bagpiper on Falls Road bridge gives me a pickup. Then downhill back to Strawberry Mansion. Plan was to kick here, but find myself sticking with the group and going just faster than the main pack. A few stronger runners are surging forward now.

Mile 10: Someone in the pack I've been with takes off and I try to match pace but can't. Still reeling in other runners, but not yet kicking like I want to. Don't believe I can run 7s-ish for 3 miles.

Mile 11: Take a last water, finally picking up pace; at least it feels like I am.

Mile 12: Can't remember. Estimate that I'll finish in around 1:37-8 when I pass the mile 12 marker.

Mile 13: Pass the mile 12 marker and decide to kick for real. Passing lots of people. See Andre and Klara at the start of Boathouse row. Their cheers pick me up another notch. Then it's a longer bend around the Art Museum than I remember. I ease up a bit.

Mile 13.1: The course closes up into a chute for the last few hundred meters. Go back to a faster pace and then a sprint. Pass another clump of runners (why is no one kicking?), including a man in a pink dress carrying a fairy wand (totally sweet).

It's not the low 1:30s I was hoping for, but 15 minutes faster than last year. So I'm neither especially dissappointed nor especially pleased. I know I can still run faster than that, but also that my marathon training has been emphasizing distance over speed. To do your best at a half-marathon, you should train to run the last 8-10 miles at close to your limit. I was definitely did not do that today. But being a big race, and a perfect day, I still had a lot of fun. And I learned a bit about what (not) to eat, and about pre-race potty preparation, which will be valuable knowledge for November.