This is my training journal. I'm bad at titles. (Comments welcome!)

THE RESULTS

Remember how I said I wanted to swing big? I did just that... and knocked it out of the park.

I knew that today was one of those very rare convergences where almost everything was perfect. The weather was sublime, my training was on-point, and I was so energetic even my Garmin suggested "Hey, maybe go do something." In the back of my mind I could tell this was shaping up to be a PR-smashing day if all went well (but I certainly didn't want to say that out loud!).

The forecast verified as 39 degrees prior to race start, and we finished somewhere around 42-43. I don't recall the dew points but they weren't very high. And it was windy, as advertised, but thankfully not enough to affect things.

Also, @WillRunForPizza and I continue to miss each other by nanoseconds. I am so sorry! One day.

TL;DR: Unofficial time 1:49:25, a PR of 5:01!!!!

Overall place: 1,821 out of 10,985
Age group: 238 out of 857
Gender: 1,365 out of 5,276

I didn't bother tracking the full mile and instead let my Garmin roll through. Also, for the first time ever, I didn't set any pace alerts. I knew I needed the minute-pace to stay at 8:00 or above so any time I happened to glance down and notice a lower number, I pulled back. Otherwise, I ran entirely on feel.

After a very restless night of sleep, I gave up around 4:30 AM and got up to make coffee. Since it was so early, I decided to eat my usual full breakfast instead of a plan bagel and banana. That was a mistake - my stomach has been on the wrong side of neutral all morning, and it wasn't a pleasant running sensation. Thankfully, it didn't make a huge difference except that skipped my 3rd and final EGel because I didn't think I'd get it down.

Mile 1: 8:24
Mile 2: 8:10
Mile 3: 7:56

A very aggressive start. Mile 3 was a net-downhill hence the faster time. Still, if you had asked me yesterday about my start race plan, I never would have told you I was running this fast. Once I started the race, I knew there were two main points about the course: a very brutal hill that was going to slow me down, and a largely net-downhill final 4 miles that would help me go faster. So, I knew I could afford to be risky here, and I wanted to know what my body had. I felt good. No, I felt great. Despite moving so fast, my energy levels continued to climb. I knew that was a good sign.

Also, past me would have been all up in my junk about those fast miles. Today me was zen. I wasn't worried or concerned I had gone out too fast. My plan was to go big or go home, and the chance of a big PR meant go fast.

This was a pretty uneventful start. Nothing really noteworthy, with the exception of an older female spectator holding a sign that said "I LOVE YOUR STAMINA! CALL ME." God bless her.

Mile 4: 8:17
Mile 5: 8:08
Mile 6: 8:17

More of the same as the first 3 miles. I had my first EGel around the 45-minute mark and felt pretty nauseous trying to get it down, so I decided then and there to skip the 90-minute EGel.

Mile 6 began the Rock Creek ascent. Elevation changes weren't too bad to that point, but I mentally prepared myself for what was coming.

Mile 7: 8:28
Mile 8: 9:00
Mile 9: 8:33

The brutal hill came around the 7.75 mile marker. According to the Strava data, we reached the zenith of elevation at 189 ft with about 8.5 miles elapsed. I was really thankful I attacked this hill in training two weeks ago; if I hadn't, today likely would have turned out very different. I didn't have too much trouble. I went with run-walk intervals to get to the top. My body wanted to push, but that would've ended in disaster. And I was still pretty gassed at the top.

Mile 10: 7:50
Mile 11: 8:00

The miracle miles, and badly needed at this point. Mile 10 was a net downhill of 43 ft, and mile 11 was an even greater downhill at 60 ft. On every single downhill I opened my stride and let my body go. This is also the point in the course where crowd participation went way up as we ran through residential neighborhoods, which helped a lot.

Somewhere in the mile 11 range, my run club was cheering everyone on. I called them out from the top of my lungs, then immediately regretted it because I was so out of breath from an uphill. Still worth it.

Mile 12: 7:52
Mile 13: 8:15
Mile 13.30: 7:15

Another 60 ft net-downhill for mile 12. I'm actually surprised to see it that fast, because man I was feeling it. I know I mentioned I was pretty zen about this race, but between mile 11 and 12 was where the mental math started to see if I had a shot at sub-1:50. I wasn't sure I was going to make it.

The 13th mile is one of the hardest miles I've ever run in my life. I knew I had to push to have a shot at sub-1:50, but I had no idea if my body had anything left. Adding insult to injury, there was a bridge with just enough of an uphill to make my legs miserable. When we finally turned down 4th street and I saw the finish line, I let it rip with absolutely everything I had.

I was so tired - so gassed and so tired - that I very nearly had to walk the final stretch across the finish. My final surge came a little too early and a little too hard and it got dicey. My stomach was also on the verge of revolt. But I just kept my legs churning, because that's all I know how to do.

And... I made it!

Came through the chute for some much-needed water, bananas, and... cheese doodles?! That's a new one for me! Also, the most nonsensically tiny Kevlar blanket I've ever seen. Totally worthless on a windy day like today!

Afterwords, I was so humbled and honored to find that a few friends had come to meet me! Because of all the road closures they didn't see me finish, but they did find me very shortly thereafter. A hot coffee at a local shop hit the spot.

I am so, so proud of what I accomplished today. More than the PR, I got out of my own head and tuned out everything that's been going on in my life. Running tends to be my mental health outlet, and I was not-so slightly worried that I was going to emotionally break down today. But I never came close!

signal-2023-03-18-10-14-47-587.jpg

Thank you to everyone who follows along with my journal. And thank YOU for sharing your journeys! You are all an inspiration to me, and reading your journals makes me better.

Now? Sleep.

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Thank you so much everyone!

This is incredible and it was great to read something so overwhelmingly positive for you!

Thank YOU! It's been tough at times and I haven't reach the end of my journey yet, but today was just what I needed to give me a more positive outlook. And I'm looking forward to seeing you again at Broad Street next month!

Congratulations!! Awesome job!

I have concluded that it's quite difficult for two people who've never met in person to find each other in a crowd 😂

Thank YOU for reaching out to me before the race! I am so sorry it didn't work out yet again. Tell you what, if you find yourself in NE, let me know and we'll grab a drink on me to make up for all these pesky race mornings.

And believe you me, I was looking for a few people this morning that I had met and found none of them! Races be crazy.
 
THE RESULTS

Remember how I said I wanted to swing big? I did just that... and knocked it out of the park.

I knew that today was one of those very rare convergences where almost everything was perfect. The weather was sublime, my training was on-point, and I was so energetic even my Garmin suggested "Hey, maybe go do something." In the back of my mind I could tell this was shaping up to be a PR-smashing day if all went well (but I certainly didn't want to say that out loud!).

The forecast verified as 39 degrees prior to race start, and we finished somewhere around 42-43. I don't recall the dew points but they weren't very high. And it was windy, as advertised, but thankfully not enough to affect things.

Also, @WillRunForPizza and I continue to miss each other by nanoseconds. I am so sorry! One day.

TL;DR: Unofficial time 1:49:25, a PR of 5:01!!!!

Overall place: 1,216 out of 10,985
Age group: 238 out of 857
Gender: 1,365 out of 5,276

I didn't bother tracking the full mile and instead let my Garmin roll through. Also, for the first time ever, I didn't set any pace alerts. I knew I needed the minute-pace to stay at 8:00 or above so any time I happened to glance down and notice a lower number, I pulled back. Otherwise, I ran entirely on feel.

After a very restless night of sleep, I gave up around 4:30 AM and got up to make coffee. Since it was so early, I decided to eat my usual full breakfast instead of a plan bagel and banana. That was a mistake - my stomach has been on the wrong side of neutral all morning, and it wasn't a pleasant running sensation. Thankfully, it didn't make a huge difference except that skipped my 3rd and final EGel because I didn't think I'd get it down.

Mile 1: 8:24
Mile 2: 8:10
Mile 3: 7:56

A very aggressive start. Mile 3 was a net-downhill hence the faster time. Still, if you had asked me yesterday about my start race plan, I never would have told you I was running this fast. Once I started the race, I knew there were two main points about the course: a very brutal hill that was going to slow me down, and a largely net-downhill final 4 miles that would help me go faster. So, I knew I could afford to be risky here, and I wanted to know what my body had. I felt good. No, I felt great. Despite moving so fast, my energy levels continued to climb. I knew that was a good sign.

Also, past me would have been all up in my junk about those fast miles. Today me was zen. I wasn't worried or concerned I had gone out too fast. My plan was to go big or go home, and the chance of a big PR meant go fast.

This was a pretty uneventful start. Nothing really noteworthy, with the exception of an older female spectator holding a sign that said "I LOVE YOUR STAMINA! CALL ME." God bless her.

Mile 4: 8:17
Mile 5: 8:08
Mile 6: 8:17

More of the same as the first 3 miles. I had my first EGel around the 45-minute mark and felt pretty nauseous trying to get it down, so I decided then and there to skip the 90-minute EGel.

Mile 6 began the Rock Creek ascent. Elevation changes weren't too bad to that point, but I mentally prepared myself for what was coming.

Mile 7: 8:28
Mile 8: 9:00
Mile 9: 8:33

The brutal hill came around the 7.75 mile marker. According to the Strava data, we reached the zenith of elevation at 189 ft with about 8.5 miles elapsed. I was really thankful I attacked this hill in training two weeks ago; if I hadn't, today likely would have turned out very different. I didn't have too much trouble. I went with run-walk intervals to get to the top. My body wanted to push, but that would've ended in disaster. And I was still pretty gassed at the top.

Mile 10: 7:50
Mile 11: 8:00

The miracle miles, and badly needed at this point. Mile 10 was a net downhill of 43 ft, and mile 11 was an even greater downhill at 60 ft. On every single downhill I opened my stride and let my body go. This is also the point in the course where crowd participation went way up as we ran through residential neighborhoods, which helped a lot.

Somewhere in the mile 11 range, my run club was cheering everyone on. I called them out from the top of my lungs, then immediately regretted it because I was so out of breath from an uphill. Still worth it.

Mile 12: 7:52
Mile 13: 8:15
Mile 13.30: 7:15

Another 60 ft net-downhill for mile 12. I'm actually surprised to see it that fast, because man I was feeling it. I know I mentioned I was pretty zen about this race, but between mile 11 and 12 was where the mental math started to see if I had a shot at sub-1:50. I wasn't sure I was going to make it.

The 13th mile is one of the hardest miles I've ever run in my life. I knew I had to push to have a shot at sub-1:50, but I had no idea if my body had anything left. Adding insult to injury, there was a bridge with just enough of an uphill to make my legs miserable. When we finally turned down 4th street and I saw the finish line, I let it rip with absolutely everything I had.

I was so tired - so gassed and so tired - that I very nearly had to walk the final stretch across the finish. My final surge came a little too early and a little too hard and it got dicey. My stomach was also on the verge of revolt. But I just kept my legs churning, because that's all I know how to do.

And... I made it!

Came through the chute for some much-needed water, bananas, and... cheese doodles?! That's a new one for me! Also, the most nonsensically tiny Kevlar blanket I've ever seen. Totally worthless on a windy day like today!

Afterwords, I was so humbled and honored to find that a few friends had come to meet me! Because of all the road closures they didn't see me finish, but they did find me very shortly thereafter. A hot coffee at a local shop hit the spot.

I am so, so proud of what I accomplished today. More than the PR, I got out of my own head and tuned out everything that's been going on in my life. Running tends to be my mental health outlet, and I was not-so slightly worried that I was going to emotionally break down today. But I never came close!

View attachment 747324

Thank you to everyone who follows along with my journal. And thank YOU for sharing your journeys! You are all an inspiration to me, and reading your journals makes me better.

Now? Sleep.

View attachment 747330
Congratulations, sounds like you had a clear plan and executed to perfectly….. well deserved 👍
 
Official race results are up on the website, and my 1:49:25 is verified. Which is good, because I wouldn't have accepted anything slower!

I was mainly curious to see the overall winner. Washington DC is both a great running city and a place that by its nature attracts a lot of type A personalities, and those two Venn diagrams intersect quite a bit based on my experience with the running communities.

Anyway, the winner finished in 1:07:08. Crazy fast!
 

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