{not much} training tuesday

Over the summer, I took a break from running. My training buddy and I hit the heavy weights in an attempt to gain muscle, using Jamie Eason’s LiveFit program. The first phase of the plan calls for no cardio, then a gradual reintroduction in phase 2. 

Sandwiched between the two phases, my cruise allowed for a week of activity but not necessarily exercise. The kayaking and the stand-up paddle boarding were done at more of a leisurely pace, instead of something which got my heart rate up or really fatigued my muscles.

Phase 2 called for lifting 6 days a week which made the scheduling of other workouts difficult. Even if I had been able to find the time, the workouts were such that my energy suffered as well. Jay and I played basketball in our community’s common area, but otherwise I didn’t get much cardio in.

Instead of progressing to the cutting phase of LifeFit, I decided my efforts would be better spent finding a routine I could stick with. Phase 3 of the program is very intense and is focused on leaning down for a special event. Looking over the diet plan to accompany the workouts, I knew I didn’t have the motivation to stick with it.

I switched to Body for Life, which involves lifting 3 times a week and alternates upper and lower body. Sprinkle in a few runs here and there, and I had a good routine going.

Until Europe.

Given the limited accessibility to electrical outlets to charge devices, I didn’t track every day/step we walked. I did, however, attempt to log at least a little bit of each town so that my Garmin log, and subsequent maps, would reflect our travel.

A rough estimation, I’d say on non-bus days we probably walked between 3-6 miles a day. Unfortunately I did no running while we were gone because I had neither the energy nor familiarity with the streets to pound the international pavement.

Paris offered a bike tour, but it was more a leisurely jaunt than a training session. Hiking the glacier at Jungfrau definitely got the heart rate up, but at only a mile or so each direction, it lacked the umph Jay and I are used to in a hike. The view, however, did leave me breathless.

 Photo credit: me or Jay. I can't really remember.

See those black dots on the lower right? Those are people. Seriously.

Upon my return to the United States, I brought back with me the bola. (Note: not actual Ebola, but rather the pet name I gave to the nasty infection clogging up my head.) I spent a week sleeping off my virus + jet lag, only reporting to my job for a 12 hours that week despite the stack of work awaiting me.

Errands filled up this past week –getting a haircut, catching up with my discipleship group, and of course the meeting I had with the associate pastor of discipleship regarding the not-to-be Sunday school teaching position.

 I’ve ran 4 times since I’ve been back from vacation, with my mileage totaling just under 16 miles. This includes my not-so-stellar 6 miler this past Sunday. I suppose you could consider this a 500+ word excuse as to why a 4 time marathoner had trouble with a run that lasted just over an hour. 

Thankfully my attitude stayed in-check during the run. It gave me confidence that if I have the follow through to complete a 6 miler in 80 degree weather, under hydrated and wheezing from the early-fall allergens then I can finish 13.1 miles respectably in 5 weeks.

What are you training for these days? 

Do you have any big events on the horizon – athletic or otherwise?

The Courage to Start

I purchased 2 stickers for my car at the Disney Marathon expo 4 years ago. Of course one was the obligatory 26.2 decal, proclaiming to the world that I am better than them I run crazy distances for the fun of it.

The second, however, explains how I truly feel about all this running and fitness stuff to which I devote so much time and effort.
 
Starring at this quote prompts a couple of questions.

1. Why are the first letters of "courage" and "start" capitalized?
2. Do I really have the courage? What prompts what I do? 

My training buddy and I decided upon a sprint triathlon for the summer. While I love running, doing it in the hot and humid summer months are miserable. 

With our eye on a tri, we decided that cross-training through the summer would be the perfect fit. Regular swimming and biking would keep our cardio up, while providing us an alternative to the head index versus treadmill debate we always have in the summer. With only 2ish days of running, and short distances at that, we wouldn't lose run fitness either.

 Neither of us are confident swimmers, and open water swim would require some work and dedication on our part. She did a bit of research and contacted the director of a local master swim group. For the past 2 weeks, she's attended the sessions. By her assessment, they are challenging but she can already see improvements to her swimming.

BUT

I don't think I have the courage to try it out. I have a whole list of reasons I'm not doing it. The reality is, if I wanted to, I would make a way. But I don't wanna.

Heck, its even taken me 2 days to put the words together for this blog. 

As the gambler says, you gotta know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em. Only I don't know which this is. Do I let myself off the hook? Accept that I can't be good at everything. Or do I push through, and force myself to face this anxiety?

From Training to Living

For the past year, I've lived in a perpetual state of training. The beginning of 2014 found me in week 5 of marathon training. Following that round with 26.2, I began 10K training, immediately followed by 8K training. Then it was time to training for my fall half marathon, and that training bled into my training for this year's marathon.

I had planned to go straight into 5K training, in prep for a late May race. Mostly, I just think I want a break. Maybe its the post-marathon fatigue talking, but I have no desire to stick with a straight plan. I didn't do speed work in the later part of my plan, so I'm not sure what my hesitancy is.

Of course it could just be too soon to think about training. I'm less than 3 weeks recovered from my big race. Add to that the beginnings of what promises to be a big allergy seasons, and I wonder if I'm asking too much for myself. Perhaps I should just allow my body to be active, rather than in perpetual training.

What does that even look like?

My race schedule typically averages over 1 a month. How would my body react to a month without racing?

2013 - 14

2014 - 18

At the moment, I've completed 3 races in 2015. This coming weekend I'm participating in the Ragnar Trail series in Atlanta, but I wouldn't count that as a race. Its certainly not something for which I've trained.

Dare I clear the race calendar and just keep moving? Yesterday I participated in the Total Body weights class at my gym for the first time since January. I enjoyed the change of pace the circuit routine had to offer, not to mention the muscle soreness that hurts-so-good this morning.

I think I'm more addicted to the thought of a plan than I am to actually racing. I don't really trust myself to stay moving on my own. I'm a lazy person by nature, and I've been fighting lethargy since before the marathon. Depression? Exhaustion? Should I fight it? Or give in and let my body have some rest? 

Listen to your body.

If you were to ask for advice, I would tell you to listen to what your body is trying to say. You've just come off a your 4th marathon - a personal best time yet again. What's wrong with a bit of rest and relaxation? I guess it comes down to not being able to trust myself. The longer I stay inactive, the harder it will be to get back started.

Come back to me in a month. If I'm not back at it, you have my permission to kick my tail. But for now I think I'll go easy on myself. Dress for a run, but walk if I want to. Go to weights class, but don't talk down to myself if I do modified push ups instead of full. Take a hike (with my husband) instead of a weekend long run. 

What does your post-race plan look like? Do you always need to be in training to stay active? Or do you workout for the sheer pleasure of it?

Shamrock Marathon - Training Tuesday

Confession: I've never properly trained for a marathon.

Sure, I've gotten long runs in on the weekend and did some mid-week runs. Its not like I just showed up on race day expecting to go the distance. However, I've never seen a training plan through start to finish.

The first obstacle is always the mid-week medium run. Straight up, I have never done one. I can't figure out how. During my winter marathon training its dark when I go into work and when I leave. I don't run in the dark solo, ever. The thought of 60-90 minutes on the treadmill, while perfectly safe, isn't appealing.

Profession: For this, my 4th marathon, I vow to follow a training plan to the best of my ability.

I'm going to keep it simple - Hal Higdon, Novice 2.  To that, I'll be adding in 2 days of Total Body weight training class as my cross trains, and we have a few hikes planned as well.  My training buddy Kelly is also signed up for the race, so she and I will be completing the midweek runs - keeping each other accountable and safe.

Hypothesis: Marathon training takes far fewer miles than anyone truly thinks.

Of course I hold this as a truth, given my history with the 26.2 distance. With each race I've significantly bettered my finishing time, while also taking training less seriously.

The opposite could also be true - what if, properly trained, I was capable of far more than I can imagine? Hence the purpose of the test. Do all the runs. Log all the miles, then sit back and compare the results.

Training starts this week. The mileage is supposed to be 3 - 5 - 3 - 6, but that's a significant cut back to what I'm currently running. So my question to you is this:

Is it cheating the marathon plan to do more than prescribed? Or is the mileage to be considered a minimum?

What's a Runner to Do?

Since my last race, I've felt lackluster about training. Sure I earned a nice, shiny new PR. HOWEVER I was a couple of minutes off my goal race time. I felt like all the hard work and consistency I had put in leading up to the race was for nothing.

The local race calendar is full of shorter distance runs - 10K being the longest. This translates into lots of speed work on the plan. I'm not sure what genius thought fast running in the humid/hot summer months was a good idea.

WHINE

WHINE

WHINE

In previous years, I've trained for triathlons - but after the flat tire coming out of T1 a couple of years ago, I'm unmotivated to train for those either.

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

So, what's a runner to do? Right now on the schedule I'm doing weight training 3 days a week - glorious air conditioning! The plan is to run Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday. And perhaps another easy run doubled up on a weights day.

Fast running is extra difficult in the humidity, but just doing easy runs all the time seems boring. There are also 2 goals for the year that would require me not giving up - PRs at every distance AND 1,000 miles logged for the year.

How do you train through it? 
When is it time to take a break from training to prevent burnout?

The One Where I Ramble About My Goals

This past Saturday, I left the early 30s demographic and entered my mid 30s. In celebration, I made the weekend awesome and epic. I haven't decided if I'm going to put it all together in one ginormous blog post, or break it up and stretch it out all week. Given that I'm celebrating a birthday month, the prolonged approach definitely crossed my mind.

I've got a list of deep, wanna be insightful post ideas swirling around in my head (and compiled in a list via an email to myself) which I haven't taken the time to flesh out. First I was just getting back into the blogging routine. Monday, Wednesday, Friday - like clock-work, I wanted to publish something, anything in an attempt to get my mojo back.

Then May hit - the month of a race (almost) every weekend. I had reports to right. And of course who can forget the trail reports. I think my blogs are the only way Jay and I keep track of just how many miles in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park we've logged.

Truth be told, I have no plans on stopping those posts. I'll throw out an occasional fluffy What I Read Wednesday and of course the Foto Friday fun.


But

My desire is to get back to journaling again, bloggy style. Pouring out my heart on the page, then cleaning it up enough that I'm not sharing too much with the world. Sure, the fluff is a part of me, but its only a part. I hope to get back to more thoughtful blogs soon.

But first...

Hello SMARM, My Old Friend

This coming weekend, I'll be running the Smoky Mountain Area Rescue Ministries (SMARM) 5K for the 4th time. I very much enjoy this race, despite the challenging terrain because of my history with it.

I ran the inaugural race as my first 5K back in 2009. Having just finished the Couch to 5K program, I was excited to run the entire race without walking.  I finished in 33:59, and immediately began looking forward to improving my time. A pattern which has continued over the years.

The following year, I ran the race again. With the hills and terrain variations in our area, an apples to apples comparison for race times is practically impossible, save repeating a race the following year. I didn't know it at the time, but I was incredibly anemic for SMARM round 2, and finished slower. My  36:48 time was disappointing and should have been a red flag of my illness.

I skipped the race in 2011 but managed to finally break through to a sub 30 finishing time at a different race. I had high hopes in 2012, but circumstances made this race only a 3 second PR - 29:17. On race day, my friend Christie O. was having cancer surgery, so I wore this tutu (crafted by Mrs. O herself) in her honor.

I'll just tell ya, rain and tutus don't mix. We got hit with a monsoon at the start line, and I lost my fluff. Instead, during the race I fought to keep the tulle from going between my legs and chaffing.


For 2013, the year of the half, I chose to travel to Ohio in quest of the illusive sub 2. No SMARM for me.

I'm excited to be tackling the race again this year. I know I'm a stronger runner than ever, but I'm not sure where my speed puts me in relation to my current 5K PR (25:50). I'm excited to see what I've got! I've ran the hills a couple of times this past week or so. Knowing the course well can't hurt!

Your turn: Do you have any races/challenges coming up? Do you prefer running the same race every year, or tackling something new/different?

My Not-Quite Quarter Marathon

File this under "thank you Captain Obvious," but training for a 10K (6.2 miles) is much different than training for a marathon (26.2 miles). While distant training always improves my endurance, which helps for shorter distances, it does present a challenge when trying to come up with a race plan for shorter distances.

In attempting to race the Mountain Man Memorial 10K I found myself conserving far too late in the race. Partially because of the crazy steep terrain, but also because I taught myself all winter how to start incredibly slow the early miles. "Early" in my marathon mind is the first hour. After all, that first hour I wouldn't even covered a quarter of my distance yet.

This past week, I started speed work in an effort to get faster before my goal race. I've got the next 5 weeks to get in the 10K mindset. The first hour isn't for warming up, its for racing. My current PR is 55:19, so come Expo 10,000 I hope I'm already at the bagel table when the clock hits 1 hour.

As we do every summer, my training partner and I are debating the merits of the weights class we take. Muscular endurance is all well and good while we are building stamina, but during our speed focused training we just aren't sure how much it would benefit. Currently on the table are the possibilities of returning to swimming and/or cycling for cross train activities.

My current plan is the Hal Hidgon Intermediate 10K. I'm not incredibly happy with it, but his advanced plan has 6/7 days a week of running. I just don't run that much. The intermediate plan calls for lots of easy miles and only 1 day of speed work per week. The challenge, however, is to actually follow the plan.

I never follow training plans. Typically I'll look at one, decide its not practical and make up my own thing as I go. A fine approach if I were using research to back it up, or if I were okay with sloppy, thrown together result - neither of which is the case.

Its time (past time really) for me to try the revolutionary new training method called stick to the plan stupid! Its sister plan slow down stupid worked marvelously for my marathon.

The part where I ask for advice:
How do I keep the easy runs from becoming boring and monotonous? How do I set a goal, when I believe I can do so much better than a new PR? How do I mentally get it through my head to start fast and get faster?

Training Tuesday - What's Next?

After an epic marathon training cycle, I'm eager to get started on my next quest for a PR. My goal is to hit a PR for each distance. One down, five to go!

Up next, I'm tacking the 10K distance.I ran the Expo 10,000 race last year, and set my current PR of 55:19. My speed in that race was leftover from a winter of intense half marathon training. This year, I plan on building from my stamina base from marathon training and adding a bit of speed.

I've tried to be conservative for the past week(ish) to make sure my body is truly recovered from the marathon. Worst thing I could do to hurt my chances at a great race time would be injure myself.




Sunday
Planned: 26.2
Actual: 26.45
I can't run in a straight line to save my life.




Monday
Planned: 30 min walk
Actual: REST


Tuesday
Planned: 30 min walk
Actual: REST

My body was sooooooooooooooo tired, but my legs felt good. I actually took a day off work to lay around and recover.

Wednesday
Planned: 2 mile run
Actual: Walk
My mom called and wanted to meet for lunch. I figured recovery week was the perfect time to walk like we use to. She has a bad knee/ankle, so this wasn't much of a cardio workout but it was good to get the legs moving again.

Thursday
Planned: 4 mile run
Actual: 8 mile run
Stupid, I know, but this was a "farewell Pete" run. Kelly wanted to do 8 and we went along with it. Hot and miserable. Energy was still low from the race.

Friday
Planned: REST
Actual: REST

Saturday
Planned: CROSS
Actual: Pool walking
Spent the day with my mom and aunt in Gatlinburg. Didn't do any actual swimming, but walked around in the pool and kept the legs moving. Once again not a cardio workout, but got the blood flowing to the ole legs.

Sunday
Planned: 4 mile run
Actual: 4 mile run
So crazy to me for the weekend "long" run to be 4 miles. I'm doing the Hal Hidgon intermediate training plan, so my mileage will top out at 8 miles the week before the race.

Monday:

Planned: 4 mile run
Actual: 4 mile run 
Ran a bit fast for my "easy" pace, but the legs felt okay.
 
Tuesday
Planned: 8X400
Actual: 4 mile run
I'm not exactly 100% yet, so I decided to hold off on speed work until next week. I ran at lunch with Kelly, and our easy paced turned into a 9:03 m/m average (starting at 9:16 and getting progressively faster). This run felt great. BUT


I'm signed up for a race this weekend, 10K distance. One of my Ragnar teammates is participating in the Mountain Man Memorial March in memory of her brother, and has asked us to join her. We're running our own races though. I signed up for the 10K not knowing how recovered I'd be at this point.

 Kelly, Christal, and me - last fall

Since the legs are feeling good, I want to set a baseline for my 10K speed and then work to build on it for the coming weeks. At this point I don't think I'll be able to PR - true to its name, the race has an intimidating elevation gain. Still, I can get a good idea of where I am and translate it into a goal time for Expo.

Run Hard Columbia - Race Report

Last year I ran the Famously Hot, Surprisingly Cool {half} Marathon. A buddy of mine lives in the area and I wanted a good pre-Knoxville test race. That race died, but I was pleased when I learned it was resurrected as the Run Hard Columbia {half} Marathon. Despite the new name, all the major components - course, date, time - stayed the same.

Unfortunately, the race was the same day as my last scheduled long run for the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon. Both races are "for fun" type things, so I decided to compromise. A couple of buddies experienced in distance training assured me that 20 milers aren't all they are cracked up to be for the training process any way. I guess time will tell if doing this race instead hurt me!

As with my other races this year, this was a "training race." Instead of an all-out effort in an attempt to PR, I was once again tweaking my negative split strategy. My previous half this year was a 2:07:51 finishing time. During that race, I'd started at a 10 m/m and had too much left at the end. The plan for this race meant starting with the 2:07 (or rather 4:15 marathon) pace group, then speed up at the end.

The plan worked. Kinda. I enjoyed chatting with the group, and they really helped me from going out too fast. With the exception of mile 2, most of the beginning of the race is flat or downhill. Given that, we very rarely hit the 9:44 mark. As a matter of fact, until the final 0.1 kick, I was behind them for the last 3 miles of my race, yet averaged a 9:24 pace. Suppose they were banking time for lap 2?

Mile 1 - 9:41

The 2nd mile of the race is where I lost the pacers last year and never caught back up. Despite the crowds early on, I had no trouble as we weaved in and out of traffic up the hill. Then once at the top, I really had to pull back to not get too far ahead on the downhill.

Mile 2 - 9:31

Mile 3 - 9:21

Mile 4 - 9:19

Those early miles were just about settling in to a comfortable pace. Honestly going that slowly was the hardest part. And "that slow" doesn't look all that slow looking at the numbers. But they felt really good. We all chatted about past races, future races, and our goals for this particular race. 

Mile 5 - 9:04

Mile 6 - 9:15

Mile 7 - 9:28

Mile 8 - 9:35

Last year, I started to struggle on the long slow pull towards the end of the race. This time around, I'd hoped to conserve enough to make it up without a problem.  While I didn't feel great, I didn't feel defeated like last time. I thought it was just a pacing/mental thing. Turns out despite my half marathon specific training last year, my splits for the last portion were better this year.

 Once again the local Hashers had beer on the course. Everyone else in my group was running 26.2, so it was too early for them. Not me - I walked through the station and enjoyed a cold, crisp beer. 

Mile 9 -  9:40

Last year - 9:48

The plan called for me to pick-up the pace around mile 10 and blast it in. There is a series of 2 steep hills during this mile, so effort was greater despite a slower pace. I took a 1 minute walk up the 2nd hill but quickly got back to running.

Mile 10 - 9:53

Last year -  10:05

With the major hills behind me, I truly picked up my step. Too much, I suspect because early readings showed this mile in the 8:XX range. Obviously I wasn't able to sustain that pace.

Mile 11 -  9:10

Last year -  9:17

The last 2 miles were relatively flat and I was able to pass a few people. Some could have been doing the full marathon, so this is no feather in my hat. Just a sign I was picking it up a bit. Towards the end of the last mile, I passed a dude who seemed to be struggling a bit. I checked for a green half marathon bib, and when I saw it said "This is it dude! We're truly almost there."

Mile 12 -9:39

Last year -  10:16

Mile 13 - 9:23

Last year -  9:33

I had been talking early about my new found kick at the end, and was a bit disappointed with my splits thus far. By the close of mile 13, I'd caught back up with the pace group. I hollered my appreciation for their company on the run. My new buddy Kevin said "let's see that kick!" and I took off.

Final 0.1(7) - {6:30}

Last year -  {8:36}

What the what??? I don't run that fast. Ever. Especially after 13 miles. Except I must.

Chip time: 2:04:00 - hit my goal right on the nose. How does that happen? This race has me feeling confident leading up to the Knoxville Marathon, but also excited about half marathon specific training and the awesome new PR I'm going to earn when the time comes!

Whitestone 30K - Race Report

The Whitestone 30K is the 3rd and final race in Knoxville Track Club high mileage series leading up to the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon. My last go-round with the marathon, I chose to do the same distances on my own, rather than paying to do what essentially would be a training run.

This year I wanted the full experience, so I signed up for the 3 pack of races: Calhoun's 10 miler, Strawberry Plains Half Marathon, and Whitestone. $60 for all 3 races is a steal of a deal for distance racing, and the series hasn't disappointed. I've gained a lot mentally from these training races.

Kingston is almost an hour of and a half from my house, so my training buddy and I got a hotel room about 20 minutes away. Was our room number coincidence or sign from God that He loves us and wanted us to half a good race?

Okay maybe God doesn't care so much about the race. But love us? No doubt!! The next morning, some online friends I have leftover from the ABC Lost message board days pointed out this was the number of one of the failed flights in the show. Thanks ladies for the boost of confidence.

Beautiful.

Great breakfast.

Hilly

Hard.

These were the descriptions I'd been given prior to the race. Thankfully we were prepared with a plan (start slow, drink water, try not to die) and these awesome good luck bracelets made by her daughter.

Given the course elevation, Amy, Sharon, Brad and I decided to treat this as a training run. We would start slow, and run this one nice and easy. We gave lip-service to the idea of starting at a 10:30 pace, but the downhill start and our race excitement quickly over powered any plans we had.

I wanted a good idea of what I'm capable of for the marathon, so the plan was to turn on the speed in the final miles. With a 3 loop course, I bookmarked the 3rd loop in my mind as the place I'd crank it up.

Mile 1 - 10:02

We settled into a comfortable, chatty pace and began to tackle the hills as they came. The race is held on open roads, but the country setting means traffic isn't much of an issue. Save for relay racers, I think we saw more dogs on the course than cars!

Mile 2 - 10:04

Mile 3 -  10:07

As a group of 4, we tried not to run 4 wide so others could pass us if needed. Chatting about future race plans and ideas, these first miles were easy.  Talking to her later, mile 4 is where Amy started hurting. She's been having IT band issues and the downhill start made for a rough race for her.
 

Mile 4 - 10:17

Mile 5 - 10:14

These early miles were hard for me mentally. I think its the discouragement of knowing just how much further there is left to race. "Talk to me Brad!" I was getting too mental and I needed to shake it. Some chatter with him along with some aid-station high-fives and I turned it around.

Mile 6 - 10:07

Mile 7 - 10:08

I'm not sure at what point Brad and I pulled ahead, but by the time I noticed they weren't behind us it was too far of a gap to hang back and let them catch us. Brad starting pulling away a bit in the big mile 8 hill, but I caught him on the down. At this point I offered high-fives to those struggling up. 

Mile 8 - 10:07

Mile 9 - 9:46

Brad had a shoe pod tracking his cadence. Whenever our pace or turnover would get too fast, he'd warn me and I'd make an intentional effort to slow it down.

Mile 10 - 10:01

Mile 11 - 10:03

Mile 12 - 10:19

Mile 13 started the loop series for the final time. In the first 2 hills, Brad fell back. I asked if it I had sped up again, but he told me he was slowing. He tried to keep up, but eventually got to where he couldn't catch me on the downs.

Mile 13 - 10:05

Mile 14 - 10:05

Less than 4 miles to go, I tried to pick it up. Enough can't be said about those hills. They are standard country road hills. The difficulty comes in their perpetual appearance in the race. Reaching the crest of one only promises a brief down recover followed by another climb.

Mile 15 - 9:57

Mile 16 - 9:35

Mile 17 - 9:51

I passed quite a few people walking the hills in these final miles. I'd said going into this race. No shaming in walking the tough ones. By mile 17, I was too stubborn to take walk breaks. With a pace in the 9s, I just kept pushing.

Mile 18 - 9:44

For the final stretch, I made keeping a 9:XX pace my goal. Not knowing the course, I was surprised to be instructed to stay straight past the driveway. I had counted on the energy of the other runners to carry me to the finish. About half a mile of the last stretch was long and lonely. By this point the field had stretched out so much there was no one in front of me to challenge myself with passing, nor behind me to chat with.

full disclosure: this picture was taken before the race

never do i run like that

especially after 18 miles

 The last quarter mile didn't concede anything on the uphill, but at least there were people, pretty things, and the end in sight!

Final 0.6 (or 0.77 by my watch ) - {10:10}

Chip time: 3:08:15
A/G: 5/6
Overall: 84/116

I needed this race to be mentally strong. I got that and then some! I executed a strong race plan, churned out stellar splits, and still had a bit left to round my mileage up to 19 miles before heading inside for biscuits and gravy.