Lehigh Valley Half Marathon - The Second Try

I have been very nervous and anxious for this race. I was hoping to match my time in Philly, which would be quite an accomplishment given the topography of this course compared to Philly's flatness. Allentown has three rolling hills right before mile 9, a bunch of random slower inclines and declines, and one sever climb towards the track stadium at the end of the race. Given my recent toe problem, I restricted myself to endurance strength training with only an occasional treadmill run. I had to give up my goal and just try to beat last year's time, which I did.

Last year, I crossed the finish line at 2:21 and my chipped time was 2:19. This year, I crossed the finish at 2:12, and my chipped time was 2:09:53.

My Beau has been very supportive through this whole endeavor. All of yesterday while I was freaking internally, he was coming up with some of the wittiest things that I have ever heard from him, such as ...

"You know your old when your shits smell like death. Mine have a healthy, robust smell."

At the Pasta Dinner, Dottie Lessard-O’Connor spoke about her gruelling work outs in preparation for her lung transplant, and the importance of following your dreams. My Beau's comment - "Right now, my dreams are covered with extra cheese."

The race itself wasn't as bad as I had feared. I just remembered how awful I felt last year, but I believe I was better prepared this year. I knew the tricky parts of the course (where the climbs are, approximately when the gravel part ends, where the finish line ACTUALLY is, things like that) and I have an easier time dealing with hills now (thanks Janet!), so I had some semblance of a game plan.

7:58 AM Near the Starting Line

I was in the pack with the 2:10 Pace Setter for the majority of the run. She did a great job at maintaining perfect pace, and I told her so. I decided to break away around mile 7, which is the flat part of the course right before the hills because I thought I would be better off executing my own game plan for the rolling hills. Trying to maintain a steady pace up and down those suckers would probably be harder for me than dealing with it on my own terms.

So I approached the steep climbs with a tightened core, extreme control of the body, and I just powered through the climb with my legs - this maximizes efficiency in exerting all force forward, but it spiked my heart rate. I engaged in an active recovery on the declines by maintaining torso control and letting the legs loose. My heart rate fell slightly and I didn't have to give up my slightly accelerated pace. The tough part of executing this plan were the older ladies that blocked the path on the decline. They were afraid of falling, so they actually slowed down at the declines. There was this one particular pack composed of shorter ladies, and since their center of gravity is already pretty low, they seemed more precarious holding themselves back. They looked less balanced and I believe they would have better off if they had relaxed a little and followed momentum a bit. Then again, who am I to say what's right for them; fear sometimes can be a wise guide. In any case, they impeded my active recovery strategy, and I was annoyed.

Once the rolling hills were over, I regrouped and slowed down a bit for more of a recovery because I wanted to finish "like a rock star," as Dottie had put it. I saw the pace setter pass me a mile or two after the hills at a water station around mile 10, but I kept an eye on her pack. I was making plans to meet up with her at mile 12, when my Beau showed up and started to run next to me to take pictures. Yes, it was obnoxious. It was impossible to smile and chat with the boy while coming up with and simultaneously execute a strategy to take down the pace setter. He eventually left me alone, and I had a mile to meet and beat my intended pace.

These pictures are the product of my Beau's annoyance.

So I just picked up the tempo and kept at it through that last climb to the stadium. That climb was a nightmare and a half, and there was another half a mile of flat road (not a decline) before the finish line. It took a lot of will to turn it up after that last climb, but I did, and I passed the pace setter around this juncture.

I tried my best to sprint it in, but it felt like a slow motion sprint. My legs and feet were not being cooperative at all. It was worth it though, beating last year's time by nearly ten minutes, not feeling like death, and actually parttaking in some of the post race food. There were chocolate chip muffin tops!

After crossing the Finish Line, and before getting my eat on

Overall, I am pretty pleased given the circumstances. And this officially marks the beginning of my running season.