Half at the Hamptons Race Report

 If you read my post yesterday you know the cold had me worried!  It was as cold as it has been all winter and the wind off the ocean was particularly brutal!  I knew I could do it but I didn't know how much I wanted to do it.  Overall I am thrilled with how this race went.  The biggest piece was how good my heel felt!  YES!  Now I can begin to think about a fall marathon if things continue to go well!  I said I wasn't going to race it but we all know how well that can work.  Even though it was not a PR or even close I absolutely did race it.  I had said I wanted to have 10 minutes a mile or better and I wasn't at all sure I could do this.  Any long runs I have done since I started running again have been very slow - high 11s or 12s.  Miles 2, 3, and 4 were close to 10 minutes so I didn't think I would be able to hold that pace.  So yeah, I began to race!

I'm going to pattern this after last year's race report.

We're off!  I had a big smile on my face as well as being a little 

choked up!

I was pleased with my splits.  I certainly finished well.  I swear the last few miles are slightly downhill as they felt so great.


I did one of the big race no nos at Mile 8 where I had a Gu I have never tried before but I felt like I was flagging and needed a boost.

My mile splits were:  (My Garmin ended up showing 13.26.)

9:24 (knew I couldn't maintain this)
9:54
9:56
9:59 (began to get worried)
9:27
9:17
9:23
9:30
9:56
9:41
9:46
9:35
9:31

8:39  Garmin overall pace 9:38

Race stats
10/32 age group
2:07:32 time
696/1163
9:45 pace

Following/passing other people

I seemed to be passing a lot of people (for me) throughout the race.  I also did well on the hills, not getting passed much and even doing a little passing.  I had one woman tell me early on that I was pacing her well.  We ran together for awhile and then I went ahead and never saw her again. On the other hand there was a man I was following that I passed and later he zipped by me and I never saw him again. But overall I felt like I did much more passing than being past.  I felt really strong the last few miles and knew I was going to meet my goal. I was thrilled!

Love this section - gorgeous!

The Course/Traffic

It was the same course as last year. I had forgotten how much of it was in the neighborhoods and not along the ocean.  This was good though as it was more sheltered from the wind.  It was a bit hilly but nothing terrible.  Two women near me were complaining about the hilly course but I figured it was like the temperature.  It is all relative depending on what you are used to. 

So much of it is  on the ocean and it was another gorgeous day. The sky was a brilliant blue and it was very clear.  I took my camera and took some pictures (like Julie and Johann- I kept running as I was taking the pics.  Do you two stop and focus or just keep running?)  as we were headed back along the ocean.  It was a little cold and tricky getting the camera in and out of my pocket but I don't like running with something in my hand.  But once again - what a gorgeous day!  Love love love the ocean.

 The race started an hour earlier this year. Traffic was much less and I suspect this was why it started earlier. This was great as I wasn't afraid I was going to get hit by a car!

Getting near the end!  

I feel great as I pick it up for the finish.

Spectators

There weren't a lot of spectators but the ones out there were great. Any cheers were so appreciated.  My friend, H, came with me again.  She managed to see me and take pictures at the beginning and end.  I had missed the mile 12 sign so I wasn't quite sure how close I was to the end.  It was great to hear her and have an idea so I  could start to really POUR IT ON!  Thanks, H, for taking those pics and cheering!

The Weather/Outfit

I've already talked about the weather. I know Chris K likes to know what everyone wears plus I found it very helpful to read about what I wore last year when I was trying to decide this year's outfit.  So this year my outfit was basically the same - so hard to believe as it was Arctic Circle weather.  I wore a long sleeve top with my Lulu hoodie.  I only wore the hood as I was waiting for the race to start.  I wore my  tights which were thin but perfect.  I think the only change was a turtle fur.  My headband and gloves were thin.  It worked!

Organization/Hotel

The race was well organized. As I said I liked the earlier start. Staying in the hotel was great esp. this year. I didn't want to go out into the cold until I had to.  A clean bathroom to use until the race start too!  I did not like watching the flag being whipped around by the wind as I contemplated what the race would be like weather wise.

Shirt/Medal

I liked last year's medal better but at the same time I like that it wasn't the same.  The shirt is a woman's fit again - a big plus but it wasn't a tech shirt - not so great.

Just like last year I ended the day at my favorite diner with a lobster roll and homemade chocolate cake!  Yum!