Lowell Sun Half Marathon Race Report

I wasn’t sure I was actually going to do the Lowell Half this morning. My throat was really sore yesterday, and by the end of the day I was feeling achy all over. This morning I woke up at 3:30 am and still had a sore throat, but not achy anymore, yet not feeling myself. Even when I got on the highway, I was still considering turning around and crawling back into bed. But I kept going. Two hours later I arrived in Lowell to pick up my packet at the arena. The race director’s warning “If you wait until race morning to pick up your number, we cannot guarantee you will reach the Start in time.” was freaking me out. Traffic was not a problem and I arrived right when packet pickup opened. But I could imagine that if you waited another hour, traffic would be an issue.

I had some time to kill since the race didn’t start until 8:00 am. I went back to the car and took a 25 minute power nap. I actually felt a little better after. I think it’s what I needed. I made one last stop to the lovely, warm bathrooms inside the arena, this time having to deal with long lines. Then I headed outside and did a very relaxed warm up mile toward the start, took off my gloves and long sleeve shirt which I ditched, and found a nook at the start with 5 minutes to spare, just the right timing.

My previous half marathon PR was at New Bedford this past March, 2:03:59 (9:27 pace). I was pretty sure I could be a little faster, but was hoping to get under 2 hours which would be a 9:09 pace. So my plan was to keep my pace somewhere in between if I could. The start wasn’t seeded and was very crowded for the first mile. I stayed relaxed and tried not to worry about the slow pace rather than wasting energy darting in between people. Once past the first mile the crowd started to thin a bit, and my pace picked up. At 3 miles, the marathoners split off and I put in my headphones as it was a lot less crowded. I stayed focused on my mile splits and not so much my overall pace. I felt really good and could have gone faster, but kept my pace slower than 9:00 for each mile.

Mile 5 came really quickly. But from there for the next 4 miles my stomach started cramping. I slowed down a bit, but still tried to keep the pace up as much as I could. And I continued to drink water and eat Gu Chomps at the water stops or drink just Gatorade. By 9.5 miles we were crossing the Rouke Bridge for the second time on this double loop course. As we were crossing we could see the faster marathoners crossing in the opposite direction. I was totally inspired. Smiling I picked up the pace on the other side of the bridge and noticed my stomach cramps had mostly gone away.

By 11 miles I knew getting in under 2 hours was going to be close. So I really picked up the pace, passing lots of people. Crossing the Aiken St Bridge I knew there was less than 1/2 a mile and kept pushing it. I was surprised by how fast I could go at this point. I cruised into the baseball park and across the finish line knowing I had run a smart race. Final time was 1:58:48 (9:05 pace), over 5 minutes faster than New Bedford. Mile splits: 9:20, 9:08, 9:01, 9:06, 9:00, 9:11, 9:09, 9:08, 9:12, 9:02, 9:05, 8:41, 8:22, 7:37 (0.1 mile). Finished 756/1490 Overall; 110/286 Female 30-39.

After I grabbed my food I sat down in the bleachers and got to watch lots of folks finishing the half marathon and even some of the first marathoners finish. Happy people, great weather (43°-52°, light wind, sunny). This was a good race and really great for spectators. The flat course was nice for a change too. I would definitely consider doing the full marathon some day, especially if I try to qualify for Boston which actually seems possible now that I finished a half in under 2 hrs.

I start training tomorrow for the Austin Marathon. I’m trying a new plan this time, the 55 Miles per Week or Less 18-Week Marathon Schedule from the book Advanced Marathoning. I know it’s a challenging plan, but doable. I think the biggest challenge for me will be fitting in the longer mid-week runs. 18 weeks until Austin!!!

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