An eerie calm

I tend to panic. It’s not a good thing, but it happens.

Thankfully, I already went through my panic stage for the Clearwater Halfathon. My panicking usually happens closer to a race, so this is kind of strange for me. The race is Sunday, and I have an eerie calm about me.

So why am I so calm?

•  I know I can do this. I can run 13.1 miles. Even if I didn’t run for a few weeks around Christmas and the new year, I’m still quite capable. Why? Runners don't lose much V02 max over a 10-day period of inactivity. And if you have to miss two weeks, it only reduces it by 6%. Thanks to Julie, I know this and feel so much better. I love her (not in a weird way … don’t be scared, Julie).
• I’ve done this five times before.

• It does involve big, scary bridges, but the Holiday Halfathon did, too (but not as big and not as scary). Guess what? I actually liked the bridges in that race. It broke up the race. It was something different. It was a challenge. That’s a good thing. 
• I'm running mile 11 for my friend, Linda. I've dubbed it "Mile Linda" (sounds better than mile 11, right?). She's been on bed rest during a good deal of her pregnancy. No matter what, that is difficult; but, Linda is a runner, too. So I'm running the 11th mile (her favorite number) in her honor.
• I’m really looking forward to the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon in St. Pete and view that as my “A” race this year. I love that race. This race will be a build up to that.
• When it comes down to it, it’s only a race. It’s not life or death. I’d love to finally beat my best time, but if I don’t, there’s always another race. It’s not that I’m not taking it seriously or that I don’t want to do well, but on the “what’s-important-in-life” scale, it’s not at the top.

Do you panic before races (or any big events)? Or are you more rational than me? I hope so.

Holiday Halfathon, Dec. 9, 2012, Madeira Beach, Florida: race recap

When I looked at the weather for Sunday, I wasn’t thrilled. Hot and humid … in December. I guess that’s what I get for living in Florida.

But thankfully, I learned the lesson of not worrying about things I can’t change. So, even though I knew what was on the horizon, I didn’t panic. Even though I was wearing a cotton T-shirt with big felt pieces glued onto it, I didn’t panic. I calmly accepted my sweaty fate.

I did panic on the way to the race when I had to make two emergency restroom stops, making me way later than I intended. Thankfully, showing up 15 minutes before the start was enough time to grab my timing chip and start the Holiday Halfathon.

The Holiday Halfathon is part of a local halfathon challenge (four half marathons from October through March). I participated in the Halloween Halfathon in October as Mr. Potato Head. That gave me the inspiration to participate in this race as Rudolph. 

From this ...

... to this (although it required a new shirt
and new parts)

This race is a point-to-point race beginning in Madeira Beach and ending in Largo. The first few miles were along the beach (but you couldn’t see the beach). You then turn off of the road along the beach, run over a bridge (my first major hill in a race) and into a neighborhood, park, along a trail and into another park for the finish line.

I wasn’t running with anyone this race. It was just me. It went pretty well … for awhile. I stayed entertained along the beach road, over the bridge (I even ran the entire way up), into the neighborhood and the park. When I got to the trail, I was still entertained for a bit. It included another incline (an overpass), and I ran up it as well. I was impressed considering I’ve never really done any hill training (mainly because there aren’t many in the area).

Since it was hot and humid, I made it a point to walk through the water stops to make sure I stayed hydrated. But, that was it. After drinking my Gatorade (blech) and water, I’d start running again. I kept this up until about mile 8 or 9. Then, my walk through the water stop was a bit extended. Then, I walked over another overpass. And, I got bored.

I didn’t have many people around me at this point. I couldn’t talk to anyone else or listen to others’ conversations. It was just me and my dead Garmin watch. I’m not sure why it died … maybe the fog gave it problems with finding a signal. But right at the time I was getting bored and over this race, my watch died. I can’t decide if this was a good or bad thing.

I kept plugging along, mostly running. The trail seemed like it went on forever. If my watch was working, I could tell you how long it was (I’m pretty sure it wasn’t forever).

I finally made it to the park with the finish line. But, the course took you around a lake before coming to the finish line. Thankfully, people warned me about this so I didn’t have a meltdown when I heard the race announcer and had to keep running and running and running to get to the finish line.

I walked more than I wanted during those last 1.1 miles. I was hot, tired and over it. If my watch was working at this point, I wonder if I would have pushed harder.

I finally made it to the last 0.1 mile (my favorite part of the race), and I was able to run hard to the finish.

Making my way to the finish (look for the big red nose and antlers)

Almost there (look for the brown shirt and antlers)

My time: 2:41:10. Blah. Still not my worst, still not my best, but my best this training cycle. It didn’t feel like my best, which gives me hope. I know I have a better time in me waiting to get out. At some point, I’m going to get closer to (and pass) that sweet 2:33:39 that I ran during the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon in February of this year. This just wasn’t the race. The pesky heat and humidity had a lot to do with that.

Denise found me at the finish, and we took a photo after I tried to cool down a bit (I don’t think I cooled down much … I was a sweaty mess). 

Overall, I really liked this race. I love that it was a point-to-point race. I liked actually making progress and ending up 13.1 miles from where I started. Thankfully, I had transportation to the start and a pickup at the finish. Thanks, boyfriend!

If you didn’t have transportation, they did have a shuttle that ran from the finish to the start. I’m glad I didn’t have to deal with that. I was hot, sweaty and tired and the last thing I’d want to do is wait on a shuttle back to my car (with a bunch of other hot, sweaty and tired people).

I loved the holiday theme and seeing Santa, reindeer and lots of red and green on the course. And I love the holiday-themed medal.

Too bad I’m not fast, I could lead the pack as Rudolph.