Police Half 2009 - Done!

To review. My goals:
- try to run it all except the aid stations, (more than check, since I ran one of them.)
- not puke on the hill coming out of the Weaselhead, (check)
- and finish without collapsing in a heap because that would alarm my wife. (check)

After all, it turned out to be a perfect morning for a run. Cool, just above 0 C, slight bit of cloud, sunny later. Very little wind. Managed to dress properly and was never too hot or too cold.

I seeded myself towards the back. The herd started at just about my max pace. My calves were feeling a little bit tight, so I was content to carry along with them. Throughout the first 10 K I felt very strong, running easily, breathing very easily, though my heart rate was up at the top of zone 3. My calves relaxed, and I ran along. I could have run faster, but I knew there was a long way to go. I chatted briefly with Brian from Try-it near the 5 K mark, and waved to my dentist Brian Walsh that did such a good job on my teeth about the 8.5 K mark. Um, on rereading, I'd like to clarify that the wave happened about the 8.5 K mark, not him working on my teeth. There were lots of people cheering us on.

Passed 9 K in 59:13 still feeling strong. From here we moved onto the South Glenmore path. I was starting to see the same faces and outfits moving back and forth. Some doing a run walk, some running faster then slower. Ran up the weasel head hill, and waved at the pipe band. I didn't see my buddy Graham playing. My run started getting a bit sloppy at the 15 K mark, and about 18 K I was getting tired and slowing down. I kept telling my legs that they didn't have to go any faster, and that we were almost done, but that we weren't going to walk. I passed a bunch of people going up and over Glenmore, and most of them passed me again on the way to the finish.

I felt so bad for one runner, lying on his back about 100 m short of the finish line, half in and out of a small lake of puke. The EMS people were looking at him with interest, and bringing over a stretcher for him. So close. I finished strong, hoping to pass a guy I'd been behind for most of the race, but he sped up too.

Throughout, my breathing was easy, and under control. Even going up the hill I wasn't gasping or panting.
Here's some of my splits.
5K 32:20
10K 1:06:00
15K 1:40:29
And the finish time that all of you have been patiently waiting for is 2:23:12 according to my watch. I'm not sure when they will post the "official" times. You can see that my last 5 K is way slower than the first 5 K. My calves were still ok, but my thighs and hip flexors or ITB was getting tired. But I didn't walk! It might be a faster race strategy to do a run walk, but I wanted to prove to myself I could run the whole thing.

Am I pleased? YOU BET YOUR SWEET ASS I AM! It wasn't so long ago that I couldn't have done this at all, and only a month ago, I was wondering if I could beat the course shutdown of 2.5 hrs. My overall pace is 6:47 Min/K, and 8.8 Kph average speed. My 15 K time is a tiny hair under 9 Kph, which I figured was the best I could hope for. But I'm sure glad this wasn't just the first lap. I don't think I could have done another lap now. I mostly forged along at my own pace, letting people pass as they pleased, and passed when I needed to. I never set a goal to pass someone, then pick a new person and pass them. I wanted to finish. Next year I can push harder. A Gu and water worked fine at the 5, 10, and 15 K marks.

Here's a couple before shots. Adrian from spin class found us before the race, but I never saw Julie, Darryl, or anyone else. I had never realized this hat has a reflective brim.



And here's a couple after shots. This was after I chatted briefly with Alex from spin class.



Weekly totals:
Swim 3 hrs
Bike 2.33 hrs
Run 5.33 hrs
Total 10.66 hrs