The last PR was set at the Shamrock Half Marathon in March 2014, at 2 hours and 23 minutes. Shamrock is completely flat. Shamrock is a race where people go to set PRs. Lynchburg is not.
Yesterday started out great. When I woke up it was nice and cool (upper 70s?), slightly cloudy, and not humid yet. My friend Rhonda and I were going to run the race together in hopes to both get PRs and we were hoping the sun would stay away (spoiler: it didn't).
Breakdown of the Lynchburg Half Course:
Miles 1-3: Flat. We were doing great here! We started out a little faster than intended and kept having to remind ourselves to save it. We got stuck in a herd going slightly slower than my body really wanted to and it helped to keep the pace in check. This part is on a bike path and is nice and shaded.Mile 4ish: This goes up a hill that never seems to end. I kept mentally telling myself this was the worst part, that it was only small hills from then on. Plus I had done this hill already a few weeks ago on a training run. I could do this! However, the sun chose to pop out right as we broke out of the trees and for some reason I started feeling lightheaded and all the little problems of this race started.
Miles 5-8: For these miles you loop twice around the Central Virginia Training Center. The loops are the worst part (I lied about the hill). These loops are why you pretty much have to run the race with a friend and keep the chatter up to distract yourself or you will crash and burn. Last year when I ran by myself, the second loop is where I wanted to just hop in a car and drive home. Somehow, even though I was complaining, and groaning, and nauseous from the Gu I ate, Rhonda kept me moving forward.
Mile 9ish: You get to go back down the awful big hill! I was flying down the hill and couldn't quite keep up with the pack we had gotten with at this time (thanks, short legs). I noticed later when I was showering that I got a black toenail and I'm pretty sure I got it thanks to that hill. Thanks, hill.
Mile 10-13: The flat part again, but in reverse. This is where I really fell apart. I was nauseous. I kept praying that I would throw up so I could feel better. I was super thirsty (probably dehydrated) but I didn't want to drink to much because it would make my stomach slosh. I was covered in salt which led to my suspicions of dehydration. If I had been alone I would have just stopped and walked the rest. But I wasn't alone and we switched to 6 and 1 run/walk intervals. My side hurt but Rhonda pushed me to keep moving. After what felt like 3 years we made it to the bridge that meant one more turn before the finish.
Getting that final boost was rough. When we were on the bridge and our time was 2:17 I said some inappropriate words. I was sick of running and I was hot. But I really wanted to PR as much as possible. This picture of me coming in shows you just about how I felt:
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| Thanks Nelfa for the photo! |
I may have complained and been miserable 10 of the 13 miles but looking back today it was fun. Maybe I forgot just how much it hurt, but it really was fun. And now that I know a lot more runners here who were there yesterday it made the whole thing feel like one big party!
So, to celebrate my PR, I'm going to do a giveaway (thanks to some awesome people over at ProCompression)!
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| The prize! One pair of green ProCompression socks. Size S/M |
