DVCFan1994
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2013
Phew caught up. Summer is busy for me and I keep having prolonged times away from the disboards, this thread is tough to catch up with
Great discussions though. Some very dramatic, motivational and educational stories in the worst race experience reports.
@Keels, so sorry to hear about your hip issues, but I am sure you will find a way to keep moving and seeing the world! And I am a huge believer in second opinions, not to find one you like, but simply to help clarify issues. My dad would absolutely be dead if he hadn't gone to Dana Farber for a second opinion, and I would have had an entirely unnecessary major operation if I hadn't gone to Boston (B&W) for one. Sometimes they just confirm the first doc (which can be good or bad based on your perspective) other times they are life changing. I hope you get useful info from yours.
Still not running, but my PT gave me a glimmer of hope that he may clear me next week. Have been doing a ton of strength training and non impact cardio at the gym. Usually I'd say at least I'm avoiding this miserable New England heat wave, but my gym's AC is not working properly.
My worst race experience is a tough call. Princess Half 2016 was toughest emotionally, but I think I learned a lot from that. I think I will go with a 10k in Bedford Ma in November 2014 for proof of time that was probably my most miserable experience (luckily my previous years POT was still good). Three factors: I was fighting off ITB syndrome, I looked at the profile of the race ahead, but did not pay attention to the labels, and I started waaaay too fast. I had been dealing with ITB for a while, it had been under control, but it was in the back of my mind the whole time. I looked at the profile online. I train in a very hilly area in Central Massachusetts, so I am used to hills. But, this race course threw me. The profile I saw had much larger higher values for each tick mark up the graph than I noticed, so I wasn't thinking it would be anything worse than I was used to. It was super hilly, as in somehow almost entirely slightly uphill, with some major hills thrown in for fun. And, I started out way too fast, which set me up for trouble on the hills and with my ITB. I was middle to back of the pack to start, planning on a 9:50ish pace. Well, it must have been a lot of fast people because I was just going with the flow, and the first time I looked at my watch, about a half mile in, I was over a minute faster than I wanted to be, around 8:35 if I recall. So, the race was just a struggle fest. I was just recovering from the tough start when the big hills started, and then around mile 4 my ITB pain in my knee got really, bad, forcing me to stop and walk quite a bit. I finished, but I was in the last 10% of runners. As for the learning experience, part, I learned to better examine race profiles 
And I start even further back than I think I need to. I also have a watch now that alerts me if I am going too fast or my heart rate too high.
I joined the Disboards in Jan 2013 according to my profile. I am guessing it was when I was planning my first Disney cruise in April of 2013. I think I lurked for a while before joining because I know I was planning way ahead of January. I started reading the rD boards that summer when I got more serious about running and signed up for my first GSC.
Great discussions though. Some very dramatic, motivational and educational stories in the worst race experience reports. @Keels, so sorry to hear about your hip issues, but I am sure you will find a way to keep moving and seeing the world! And I am a huge believer in second opinions, not to find one you like, but simply to help clarify issues. My dad would absolutely be dead if he hadn't gone to Dana Farber for a second opinion, and I would have had an entirely unnecessary major operation if I hadn't gone to Boston (B&W) for one. Sometimes they just confirm the first doc (which can be good or bad based on your perspective) other times they are life changing. I hope you get useful info from yours.
Still not running, but my PT gave me a glimmer of hope that he may clear me next week. Have been doing a ton of strength training and non impact cardio at the gym. Usually I'd say at least I'm avoiding this miserable New England heat wave, but my gym's AC is not working properly.
My worst race experience is a tough call. Princess Half 2016 was toughest emotionally, but I think I learned a lot from that. I think I will go with a 10k in Bedford Ma in November 2014 for proof of time that was probably my most miserable experience (luckily my previous years POT was still good
). Three factors: I was fighting off ITB syndrome, I looked at the profile of the race ahead, but did not pay attention to the labels, and I started waaaay too fast. I had been dealing with ITB for a while, it had been under control, but it was in the back of my mind the whole time. I looked at the profile online. I train in a very hilly area in Central Massachusetts, so I am used to hills. But, this race course threw me. The profile I saw had much larger higher values for each tick mark up the graph than I noticed, so I wasn't thinking it would be anything worse than I was used to. It was super hilly, as in somehow almost entirely slightly uphill, with some major hills thrown in for fun. And, I started out way too fast, which set me up for trouble on the hills and with my ITB. I was middle to back of the pack to start, planning on a 9:50ish pace. Well, it must have been a lot of fast people because I was just going with the flow, and the first time I looked at my watch, about a half mile in, I was over a minute faster than I wanted to be, around 8:35 if I recall. So, the race was just a struggle fest. I was just recovering from the tough start when the big hills started, and then around mile 4 my ITB pain in my knee got really, bad, forcing me to stop and walk quite a bit. I finished, but I was in the last 10% of runners. As for the learning experience, part, I learned to better examine race profiles And I start even further back than I think I need to. I also have a watch now that alerts me if I am going too fast or my heart rate too high. I joined the Disboards in Jan 2013 according to my profile. I am guessing it was when I was planning my first Disney cruise in April of 2013. I think I lurked for a while before joining because I know I was planning way ahead of January. I started reading the rD boards that summer when I got more serious about running and signed up for my first GSC.
Welcome. Hopefully you, and all the new participants, stick around for a while.
