Turkey Trot 2009 "race" report.
I didn't really plan on doing the Turkey Trot this year. Karen had implied she wasn't going to advise we run it, what with being right after San Antonio and right before a long and hard Saturday run, and I was a little sad because I've done it every year since 2004. Then she said as long as we didn't race it, we could run it as our Thursday run, with a warmup and a cooldown, so I signed up. And as she recommended, to make sure we didn't let ego step in, I signed up untimed, to discourage me from racing it. Yay, another long-sleeved white Turkey Trot shirt!
Met up with a couple of the Team (+Matt) to do our 2 mile warmup, then we all went our separate ways before the race. I needed a portapotty, but hadn't left myself with enough time, so I figured.. 5 miles.. I can deal with it for 5 miles. Since I wasn't racing, I decided to start farther back than I normally would, and got into the chute just behind the 9-10 minute mile sign. With a lot of dogs and strollers and people who looked an awful lot like they intended to walk. I figured I'd regret it, but .. eh.
Gun went off, very, very slowly walked to the start line, then started to run right before the line. And sure enough, my first mile was spent dodging and weaving and ducking and darting. Shoulda started further up. I mean, I wasn't racing, but I still wanted to run my pace. Anyway, that spread out after a mile, and it was fine.
Karen said no racing, but if we wanted to do progressive pace, we could. She said start at half marathon goal pace (HMGP) + 1 minute, then take off 15 seconds each mile, ending at HMGP. For me that would mean roughly:
9:00
8:45
8:30
8:15
8:00
I figured if I felt good, I'd aim for that. But when I started running and was frustrated from the dodging and weaving, I decided to say "screw my watch" and run purely on perceived effort and how I was feeling. So I never checked my pace or tried to race anyone or do anything other than just run and feel good. I did hit the splits on my watch, though, for my records. And my first mile was an 8:59, which, hey, was what Karen said to do. And then.. my second mile was an 8:15. Oops. But the weather was picture perfect, the day was beautiful and running just felt effortless. Even with the hills.
And I just kept getting faster. At one point I saw Lori just in front of me, so I ran to catch her. Right then, Karen passed me, and I picked it up a little to chat with her for a few seconds until she flew off. Then I mentioned to a girl that I'd been leapfrogging with her for a mile or so, and we chatted for a while. I told her about the hill at the end. She just moved here from Houston, and wasn't too fond of our hills. Then I passed Lindy and chatted briefly with her. And then before I knew it, it was the turn for the final nasty hill (thanks, Steph, for cheering me up it!), then a downhill to the finish line, with Matt and Joleen cheering crazily for me. Matt told me to kick it in, I yelled back that I wasn't racing. As I crossed the finish line, I stopped my watch and saw my last mile was a 7:43. Oops. I didn't INTEND to be racing.
Actual splits:
8:59
8:15
8:13
7:45
7:43
Total: 0:40:59 (8:10/mile)
Granted, this was much shorter than the San Antonio half, but it's amazing how different two runs can be. The weather was better, I just felt better right from the start line, and a pace that felt effortless at the end of the Turkey Trot was unachievable during any mile in SA. Runs like today are what make running worth it. And it seems appropriate that I would have such a great run on Thanksgiving.
Dutifully did my 1 mile cooldown, then milled about chatting with so many people I knew, and drank some of Matt's mimosa at the Texas Iron parking garage roof party.
Too bad I didn't run timed! This was my second fastest Turkey Trot, though the course last year was short, so it may actually be my fastest. Maybe I just go faster when I remove all the pressure from myself, because I'm not racing. :)
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Thank you for.. being you.
Met up with a couple of the Team (+Matt) to do our 2 mile warmup, then we all went our separate ways before the race. I needed a portapotty, but hadn't left myself with enough time, so I figured.. 5 miles.. I can deal with it for 5 miles. Since I wasn't racing, I decided to start farther back than I normally would, and got into the chute just behind the 9-10 minute mile sign. With a lot of dogs and strollers and people who looked an awful lot like they intended to walk. I figured I'd regret it, but .. eh.
Gun went off, very, very slowly walked to the start line, then started to run right before the line. And sure enough, my first mile was spent dodging and weaving and ducking and darting. Shoulda started further up. I mean, I wasn't racing, but I still wanted to run my pace. Anyway, that spread out after a mile, and it was fine.
Karen said no racing, but if we wanted to do progressive pace, we could. She said start at half marathon goal pace (HMGP) + 1 minute, then take off 15 seconds each mile, ending at HMGP. For me that would mean roughly:
9:00
8:45
8:30
8:15
8:00
I figured if I felt good, I'd aim for that. But when I started running and was frustrated from the dodging and weaving, I decided to say "screw my watch" and run purely on perceived effort and how I was feeling. So I never checked my pace or tried to race anyone or do anything other than just run and feel good. I did hit the splits on my watch, though, for my records. And my first mile was an 8:59, which, hey, was what Karen said to do. And then.. my second mile was an 8:15. Oops. But the weather was picture perfect, the day was beautiful and running just felt effortless. Even with the hills.
And I just kept getting faster. At one point I saw Lori just in front of me, so I ran to catch her. Right then, Karen passed me, and I picked it up a little to chat with her for a few seconds until she flew off. Then I mentioned to a girl that I'd been leapfrogging with her for a mile or so, and we chatted for a while. I told her about the hill at the end. She just moved here from Houston, and wasn't too fond of our hills. Then I passed Lindy and chatted briefly with her. And then before I knew it, it was the turn for the final nasty hill (thanks, Steph, for cheering me up it!), then a downhill to the finish line, with Matt and Joleen cheering crazily for me. Matt told me to kick it in, I yelled back that I wasn't racing. As I crossed the finish line, I stopped my watch and saw my last mile was a 7:43. Oops. I didn't INTEND to be racing.
Actual splits:
8:59
8:15
8:13
7:45
7:43
Total: 0:40:59 (8:10/mile)
Granted, this was much shorter than the San Antonio half, but it's amazing how different two runs can be. The weather was better, I just felt better right from the start line, and a pace that felt effortless at the end of the Turkey Trot was unachievable during any mile in SA. Runs like today are what make running worth it. And it seems appropriate that I would have such a great run on Thanksgiving.
Dutifully did my 1 mile cooldown, then milled about chatting with so many people I knew, and drank some of Matt's mimosa at the Texas Iron parking garage roof party.
Too bad I didn't run timed! This was my second fastest Turkey Trot, though the course last year was short, so it may actually be my fastest. Maybe I just go faster when I remove all the pressure from myself, because I'm not racing. :)
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Thank you for.. being you.