Half-Assed Runner

Archive for the ‘Quarter Marathon’ Category

“Sometimes you eat the bear and sometimes… well, he eats you” – The Stranger to The Dude

I had been looking forward to the Run For Blood Quarter Marathon for some time now.  Not only would I tick off another race for the Explore Minnesota Challenge, but I would get a medal and finally get to run Lake Calhoun…twice.

I got up early and drove to the lakes.  The one thing I hate about this area is finding parking.  The streets were already blocked off for the run when I arrived, so I spent some time circling looking for parking.  I finally nabbed a street spot near the Lake Harriet band shell.  It wasn’t the closet spot, but it was free.  I would have to jog about a mile to the get to the starting area, but the race did not start until 8:30 so I had plenty of time.

I got to the starting area just before 8 am and went to pick up my packet.  I gave my name and the volunteer started searching for me on her list.  I noticed that this was the 5K list, and said “I’m in the quarter marathon”.  She then shouted excitedly to another volunteer who quickly nabbed a shirt and my packet and thrust it towards me excitedly.  While she was explaining (quickly) how to fasten my timing chip, I noticed that there were only about a half-dozen remaining quarter marathon packets left on the table.  I guessed that there was a pre-race pickup on Friday and/or most people got here early.  It was odd that I was one of the last to grab a packet when I was here 30 minutes early.

At this point I heard some announcements over the PA and a long line of runners streamed past.  I wondered if these were the 5K runners.  I saw a bunch of pacers with balloons tied to sticks and thought it odd that they had pacers for a 5K race.  Then I heard, “There go the quarter marathoners.  5K runners should start lining up as the 5K race will start in about 5 minutes.”

What. The. FUCK?!?!?

I looked at my phone one more time as a sanity check.  Here’s the email I had saved in my calendar:

Thank you for registering as a participant in the 2012 American Red Cross Run for Blood! Your support will make us successful in providing programs and services to help you, your family and your neighbors prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies.
…
The Red Cross Run for Blood is Saturday, July 28. Check-in begins at 7:00 a.m and the Walk and Run begins at 8:30 a.m. If you have any further questions or need assistance in any way, please contact us.

Good luck in your efforts!

They had started the race 30 minutes early?

As quickly as I could, I fastened my race bib and tied my timing chip to my shoe.  It was too hot to wear a shirt, let alone two, so I folded the shirt and stuffed it in my running shorts.  It barely fit.  So not only would I be starting the race late, but I would have to run it with a wobbly bulge in my shorts [I’m cringing as I write this].  I ran to the starting area, but I had to work my way through the gathering 5K runners to get to the starting line.  When I got there, the timing mat had been moved to the side of the road.  Oh well, I guess I would get my first DNS ever.

I took off at a brisk, but not sprinting, pace.  I was starting over 5 minutes after the starting gun.  My only goal was to somehow catch up to the back of the pack.  God bless the walkers, I was able to catch up to the last of them within the first .3 miles.  Soon after I saw the last of the runners and mixed in with them.  I actually ended up passing a pacer (I did not see the time on his sign) before long.  When Endomondo announced my mile split at 8:03, I knew I needed to slow down.  I think that’s the fastest mile I’ve ever run (since boot camp at least).  By this point I was in a thick grouping of runners and I paced off of them because I knew I would bonk long before the 6.5 mile finish if I continued at this pace.  My next mile was at a much more realistic 9:20 pace.

It was 75 degrees with 60% humidity and no wind.  Though cooler than much of the summer so far, I was sweating buckets almost immediately.  There was a water stop manned by some Boy Scouts around the 1.5 mile mark and another at the first pass of the finish line.  Since the race was two laps around Lake Calhoun, you ended up with 3 water stops during the quarter marathon.  On the second lap, I ended up drinking 4 cups of water at the 3rd water stop.  I walked briefly at the 2nd and 3rd stops.

Run For Blood Quarter Marathon

I never really got into a rhythm during this run.  The nervous energy from the start of the race quickly burnt off and the sun beating down on me sapped much of my remaining mojo.  The last 4 miles were at a very consistent 9:30 pace.  I ended up passing quite a few more runners and was even passed a few times (were these runners late starters as well).  I did enjoy the scenery for the most part.  This was the first time I had ever run around Lake Calhoun (I had walked it many times in college).  Lake Street was partially closed off (right lane) but the parking lots on the north side of the lake were still open.  Since I was in back of the pack where there tended to be gaps between runners, I did see some cars zip through to get out of the parking lot.  One lady tried to pull out before I crossed.  I ran in front of her and slammed my fist on her hood.  I was in no mood to play “let’s ignore the runner”.

The could was pretty flat.  There was a minor incline on the north side and a minor decline on the west side.  There were a number of interesting characters to take your mind off of running.  I saw two bagpipers, an Elvis impersonator, and a number of Minnesota Vikings cheerleaders.

At some point on the second lap, my left ankle hurt a bit.  Nothing major, but every step felt like running on an old bruise.  I had played football a few days earlier and attributed this to the amount of stop and start sprinting I did that day.

I crossed the finish line with a sprint.  A volunteer stood in the middle of the course about 20 feet past the finishing mats and held his right hand up in the air.  I figured that he was motioning me to stop because my timing chip would not show a starting time.  I came to a dead stop about two feet in front of him.  He looked confused and mouthed some words.  I say “mouthed” because I was still blasting music in my ear buds and did not hear him.  I yanked out my ear buds, and said “What?” in what I too late realized was a shout (I had not yet adjusted from the thundering volume of the music).  Now he looked more confused and taken aback.  He still had his hand up like he was telling me to stop.  Actually, he was congratulating me and was trying to high-five me.  I felt like a fool.  I laughed and apologized.  I told him my mind goes to mush after a run.  I quickly collected my medal and looked for some water.

I sat down and finished off a banana and a bottle of Muscle Milk (love that stuff).  When I got up again, the slight pain in my left ankle had intensified.  By the time I finished walking back to my car, I was hobbling pretty badly.  I could not put any weight on my left foot.  I had suffered my first real running injury.  I could barely walk for the next three days and did not run for another six.  My wife filled me with horror stories about tendonitis and such.  I knew it was my Achilles tendon that was hurting.  I still think it stemmed from playing football and was due to repeated planting and quick sprints and movement changes.  I run a ton more than I ever did, but it’s not fast and I don’t make sharp turns.  I don’t know what prompted the injury during the quarter marathon nor why it manifested itself three days after playing football, but it was just another loss in a day full of fail.

The only other photo I took at the race

I checked the race website for the starting time, and did not see it listed.  Of course, it was splashed all over the Facebook page and the race update emails I received.  I just never looked at them too closely and had used the initial email to schedule the race in my calendar.  Oh well, if I had been running as late as I usually do, I would have missed the start by nearly 25 minutes.  I did manage to check in at the Explore Minnesota booth after the race, so that was a minor victory.

I will definitely run this race again next year.  My time was a few seconds over one hour.  I really wanted to break an hour, but all things considered, I was happy with the time.  I did not end up with an official DNS, instead my time was simply recorded using gun start, so it shows up as about 6 minutes slower than my actual time.  The medal was very cool and the race shirt was very nice as well.  Next year I’ll triple check the start time and make sure to start on time. 

Run For Blood Quarter Marathon shirt and medal

Run For Blood Quarter Marathon shirt back

Run For Blood Quarter Marathon medal

Run For Blood Quarter Marathon course