cewait
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2000
Ok DH wants me to ask a question:
He is S-L-O-W. He ran his first half marathon in October and finished in 3:52. He is running the half in 2 weeks and is concerned about being swept. He got corral F, and is planning to get as close to the front as possible.
So the question is: what is the longest any one has run the half in? I saw someones signature that had 3:48 from last year, so he is encouraged by that. He is okay with the prospect of being swept but obviously would prefer not to be. I understand (and this may be incorrect) that once you are past a certain point, they won't sweep you and you can finish.
He needs some encouragement, all the snow we are getting here is bringing us down.
First, not to discount the pp, one simply cannot count on 4:17 on course from F. (plus I wond if she was speaking clock time instead of actual time). The clock time will easily say 4:20-4:40 for the last runners on course but REMEMBER, the last runner will cross the line 50 minutes after the clock starts. We need to talk chip time or the time the runner actually has on course.
Second and foremost, once the gun goes for his corral, his sole thought should be the relentless pursuit of forward momentum. That means not over hydrating in the corrals, possibly hopping the fence on the right side of the corrals and taking a last minute break in or near the canal. Once he crosses the line, he needs to think great form, follow my intervals, nice deep breaths, head up, loose arms swinging freely to counter balance stride and keep a smile on the face. He should remain within himself and not go out too hard in mile 1, but still stay within himself. Race day will provide a natural boost in speed. He still needs to control the speed. Nice steady pace.
If he does not have a timer of some sort that he can set to start as he crosses the line, go find a cheap Timex Ironman Watch. He needs to click off 16 minute miles. A simple pace chart or wrist band (Cliff hands them out) with 16 minute intervals will help. So at mile 1, his watch should say 0:16, mile 2, 0:32, and so on. His goal is to get through Cinderella Castle and to Mile 6 by 1:36. If he is ahead of this in Frontierland, then he can whoa up for just a moment and enjoy the remainder of the park. As long as he is in front of the 16 minute pace he will have no worry.
What if he fails a little on pace. for all practicable purpose, he has 18 minutes or so on the last person in the field. That equates to a oops, it's not going so well pace of 17:25. There is a 'usual' fail safe point at mile 10 and change. Folks are generally given relief from the sweeper once they get off World...Usually, but not officially. He needs to get to off World Dr by 2:50 or so on his watch. Again, not a guarantee, but a usual, safe point from there on in.
Again, Keep moving forward and try to avoid unnecessary stops. Keep as good of form as possible. In the event the folks on bikes catch him or he sees a flag on the mile marker, he needs to pedal just a little harder. In the event he simply cannot make it, then he must still hold his head high. He should never forget that he is doing something that only 1% of the population is doing. Try to find something unique or humorous about the end game and make that part of the story. I was swept once after getting injured in a local 5k. In my sweeping, I was hit by the Sheriff Deputies car I asked if he was trying to push then hopped in the back. There should be no embarrassment in not making the end.
I wish him well and hope that he has a great day.