The Athens Half- Marathon 04/06/08: 1:35:27 (PR) - Jay McAbier

On Saturday evening, I left the house at 5:30 pm to drive down to my sister Karen’s house in Lancaster, Ohio.  Her husband, Bill, is running the race (his 1st half) and the reason that I elected to participate.  I was looking forward to being back on the Ohio U. campus as Tanja and I have lots of memories there.  I arrived at Karen’s at 8:30pm, spent a little time with the kids, and then hung out watching the final four game.  I got to bed around 11:00pm.  I was able to sleep fairly well and woke around 6:00am.

Breakfast was the typical ¾ cup oatmeal with a sliced banana topped with some honey.  I drank about 16 ounces of water, and then sipped Gatorade on the hour drive to Campus.  Registration was a piece of cake which left Bill and I some time to drive around, see the old apartments and houses, and reminisce.  All this left me in high spirits for the event.  It was a perfect morning; a “bluebird” day with the race temps in the low 50’s.

Completing the distance was never an issue for me.  What brought me anxiety was the thought of how hard could I push myself.  Could I live up to my expectations, how would my legs feel, can I sustain the heart rate plan that Angela had laid out for me.  I guess it comes down to the fact that I always get nervous before an event and when that feeling no longer makes me giddy, it will be time to move on to another passion.

Race Plan:
Mile 1-4 Low Zone 3 (151-156)
Mile 4-8 mid Zone 3 (157-163)
Mile 8-12 High Zone 3 (163-170)
Last mile let it rip.
You will be a bit fatigued from the last couple weeks, travel and brick. Practice eating and drinking. Give HR and splits for each mile

We assembled at the college green for the start.  When the cannon went off, it was about making your way through the crowd and just settling in to warm-up the heart.  I immediately noticed a girl running just in front of me who had great form.  Within a mile, I thought this girl could be my pacer as she was moving at a decent clip and not even breathing out of her mouth yet.  So I decided to try to hang on to her pace as long as I could.  At the 3-mile mark, she yelled to some friends who were cheering her on that she was running too fast and needed to slow down.  At this point we had been running side-by-side for 3 miles, so she was definitely aware of me.  I spoke up and told her that she couldn’t slow down because she was my pace person J  If she slows, I would have to slow.  As we chatted, I learned that this was to be her last long run before Boston Marathon in 2 weeks.  We talked about the importance of “prep” races to get you out of your training comfort zones.  This race was to accomplish that for the both of us. That talked seemed to work for both of us because neither of us slowed the pace.  We took turns pulling when we were not running side-by-side. 

My heart rate was right where Angela wanted it through the first half.  I hoped that I could continue the pace, but knew deep inside that I probably would not be able to run the last 4 miles with a target heart rate of 164-170.  I thought that would be totally unattainable, but I kept a positive outlook to see what would happen.  At the 7.5 mile mark, I pulled ahead and left the girl.  The plan called to kick it up at the 8 mile mark, so I was just a little early.  As with all races, I would simply look for a person in the distance and tell myself that I wanted to catch and pass them.  I was able to pass every person that I set as a goal.  It would tell myself as I passed each one that I was pulling the energy right out of them and absorbing it.  The plan called for a “let it rip” at the 12-mile mark.  I tried to that, but it didn’t seem like I was gaining any speed.  I just kept focusing on the last person I was to pass.  This person had a huge lead, but he was the only person in my sights so I went after him.  I finished 2-yards behind him.

Overall, I couldn’t have imagined a better race day.  The sky was beautiful, I ran a time that the “big dawgs” run at, was able to consume a decent amount of hydration, and had a lot of fun.  Throughout the entire event, I kept watching my heart rate and reminding myself that not only does Angela think that I am capable of this, but also capable of sustaining it.  That was the motivation that I needed.

Fluids & Calories Consumed:

• 30 ounces of Gatorade Endurance (mixed a little weak) & each 22 ounce bottle had 1 scoop of Carbo Pro added.

• 295 calories

Equates to:
20 ounces of hydration per hour and 196 calories per hour.