My Year of Running in 2021

The quick stats:

• Miles run:  4168.2
• Races run:  14
• Race overall female podiums:  14
• Race overall female wins:  7 (1 overall person win)
• PRs: 
• 50k, with 3:34:41 in my debut
• 20k, with 1:19:41, though that's slower than my PR marathon pace
• Yearly mileage, with 4168.2
• Monthly mileage, with 428.2
• Weekly mileage, with 106.0
• Records:
• 4th fastest overall female 50k time in North America in 2021
• Missouri state road racing record for overall female 50k
• Frisco 50k female course record
• Oklahoma state road racing record for female masters and female age 40-44 half marathon
• Missouri state road racing record for marathon female age 41
• Missouri state road racing record for 20k female age 40
• Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon masters record (2021 was the 40th year for the race)
• Hospital Hill Half Marathon course record (2021 was the first year for a new course though, so I got this by nature of winning the race, not by really running a record)
• Injuries: 0

Smiles in my first 50k

The overall impression:

2021 was a good year!  While I didn't have any break-through times, I consistently ran well throughout the year in races and workouts.  I really found my stride with masters running and enjoyed the new opportunities it brought.  I can almost say I'm undefeated in the masters division, with the one exception being the 10,000 m at USATF masters track nationals (so, I am undefeated on the road!).  Most importantly, I had zero injuries, issues, or significant illnesses!

I had a lot of fun chasing records, some of which I didn't even know I was chasing (I didn't know about the 50k North American list, the Oklahoma masters half record, or the Milwaukee Marathon masters record until after those races - nor Hospital Hill, but that really doesn't count).  I also had a lot of fun doing races that I've avoided in the past.  Most races I ran this year are races I wouldn't have run in 2017-2020 because they aren't fast courses or generally in good weather.  I didn't have any good weather + fast course combinations this year, which may also be why I didn't have any break-through race times - or at least that sounds like a good rationale.  I had a few great weather + mediocre course situations (Frisco, Tobacco Road, Bass Pro), two of which went well and the third which I was a tad overcooked for.

I think my best performance of the year was the Tobacco Road Marathon; though not a PR, I ran a 2:48 on gravel in a race with around 900 ft of elevation gain and I paced pretty brilliantly, including the fastest final mile of any marathon I've ever run (6:07, as the first 2.5 and last 2.5 miles were on the road).  I think if I'd been on a flat paved course that day I'd have seen a PR, but as it was I was happier with this race than any of the other 2:4Xs I've run in the past few years.  It was liberating to feel like I ran a really good marathon instead of feeling like my time just wasn't good enough (re: 2:45).  I was also pleased with my 50k debut, though the final 4 miles weren't what I wanted and I know I can do better!  The Milwaukee Marathon, while a poorly paced race, was also one that I'm proud of in retrospect because my performance in the weather conditions we had was pretty solid - just significantly slower than I'd have run in 40 degrees.  The only race I was purely disappointed in this year was the masters national 10,000 m, but I walked away knowing that I should never again run a track race in 90 degrees! #themoreyouknow

My other big running-related highlights for the year were being selected to join the rabbitELITE team and Team UCAN.  Nike is also supporting me with some great shoes for marathon training through 2024.  I've applied for several elite teams and programs over the years, and it's been exciting to find some good fits and to represent brands that I love!  I wrote a recent article for rabbit chatter here.

I am heavily involved with my local running group, Miles from Mentor.  We have group runs every day, and I coach many of the regulars so I coordinate our workouts as much as possible given our varied race schedules and goals.  One of my athletes took her marathon PR from a high 2:57 to a mid-2:52 and ran two marathons off of one cycle for the first time this year.  Another ran a 4 minute PR at Chicago in the terrible heat (she was ready for about a 15 minute PR).  Another improved his half PR from 1:19 to 1:15 - to think, I recruited him to join our group because he was about my same pace before I started coaching him, hah!  Another of my athletes broke my 8k course record at Frisco and had a speedy half debut.  I have one running Houston in January 2022, ready for her first sub-3.

I really enjoy coaching, and seeing my friends succeed was more exciting than anything I did this year.  When I retire from my full-time gig I'd love to do more official coaching, but currently I'm a volunteer, though I love when I get treats like brunch or UCAN from my athletes!

I have big goals for 2022, but the most important is to maintain my zero injury streak so I can continue doing what I love every day!  Admittedly I did the math on what it would take to exceed 5000 miles for the year (average of 96.2/week), and it wouldn't be smart for me to do that yet, but maybe in a couple of years...

From the rabbit elite website

You can read my race reaps for 2021 here:

• 2/6/21 - Cabin Fever Reliever 20K
• 3/13/21 - Running of the Squirrels 5K
• 3/27/21 - T-Town Half Marathon
• 4/17/21 - Clinton Historic Half Marathon
• 4/24/21 - Frisco Railroad Run 50K
• 5/15/21 - Tobacco Road Marathon
• 6/5/21 - Hospital Hill Half Marathon
• 7/3/21 - 3.1 on the 3rd
• 7/24/21 - USATF Masters Outdoor National Championship 10,000 m
• 8/28/21 - Rock the Parkway Half Marathon
• 9/13/21 - Plaza 10K
• 10/3/21 - Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon
• 10/17/21 - Garmin Kansas City Half Marathon
• 11/7/21 - Bass Pro Marathon

You can read my 2021 monthly recaps here:

• January
• February
• March
• April
• May
• June
• July
• August
• September
• October
• November
• December

You can read my past yearly recaps here:

• 2020
• 2019
• 2018
• 2017
• 2016 
• 2015

Bass Pro Second Half

The first half of the race flew by, and everyone seemed to be in high spirits starting the back half.  I vacillated between wanting to push the pace to help Casey possibly PR, and wanting to slow down.  We were pretty chatty through about 16, but as we left the Southern Hills area around 17 we all seemed to get quieter.  As we passed the mile 18 sign, Jacqui told me and Casey that she'd made it her goal to stay with us through 18 so she'd done it.  She seemed to be feeling strong, and we encouraged her that she could keep staying with us.

Through the entire race, there was variation on who was pushing and who was coasting amongst the 3 of us, but it became more apparent who felt good and who didn't at various times in the final 8 miles.  One huge perk of running with a pack is that different people go through rough patches at different times, so when you're in a strong stretch you get to pull someone else along, which can increase energy by helping someone, and when you're in a rough patch you can latch on.

The three of us passed mile 20 side-by-side, along with our lead female cyclist.  I felt average for mile 20 - not super strong but not bonking.  I knew a friend was spectating on the course around mile 20.5 and that Jon and Albani were at mile 22, so thinking about that helped break up the miles as they started to get harder.  Casey fell back slightly off of Jacqui and I at mile 21, but it wasn't noticeable initially because like I said, we all had patches where we were kind of hanging on.  We also got slightly separated when one person was grabbing water or taking a gel.

Jacqui grabbed a cup from an aid station around mile 22 and I didn't, so I pulled a few steps into the lead at that point.  My initial reaction was "it's time to go" but based on how meh I felt, I thought it was too soon to really start pushing it.  In hindsight, maybe I should have tried to take a more dominating lead at that point, but I didn't and soon she was back by my side.  Coincidentally, we passed Jon when I had a slight lead, so he told me that I was winning - but he also saw shortly after when Jacqui pulled back up beside me.  We continued side-by-side past mile 23, where she mentioned that she'd made it her goal to stay with me until mile 23, but her legs were really feeling it.  I said something like, "Of course, it's mile 23, but you've got this!"  While my legs were also certainly feeling it, her comment gave me some hope.

My small lead after an aid station

Around mile 23.5, we went through a short tunnel that was muddy.  I've slipped in that specific tunnel before and well as in similar tunnels in the Springfield trail systems, so I was pretty tentative going through and Jacqui gapped me.  Had I felt better, that wouldn't have been a big deal and a few uptempo steps would have closed the gap, but with my lack of reserves, I couldn't manage to pull back up with her.  I knew I really needed to hang on to have a chance, but my legs weren't responsive when I tried to surge.

We passed my favorite aid station, by OMRR, at mile 24 where I trailed by ~5 seconds.  I kept reminding myself of the fast finish I'd done on the end of the course the week before - "You did 6:25s then, you can do it again now!"  I wasn't looking at my watch, but it was clear that I was not doing enough to stay in contention for the win.  Jacqui gradually pulled away from me.  I kept reminding myself that anything can happen at the end of a marathon, and stayed as strong and focused as I could.  The closer the finish got, the more I resigned myself to second though.  I looked back on one of the many turns to see if Casey was coming up on me, but I couldn't see her, so it seemed I was pretty secure in my position.

Final stretch

I weaved through several half runners in the final half mile and smiled coming down the final stretch.  I had looked at my watch enough during the race to feel confident that I was going to get the age 41 state record, but I was sad there wasn't a finishing clock to capture that!  I got blocked by a couple of half runners on the final narrow turn right before the line - I now feel bad but I yelled "marathoner coming through" as I tried to barrel between them; the turn was narrow and they were walking 2 abreast (note to everyone: don't let that race come down to the final 20 meters, there isn't room for that!).

Non-clock shot

I crossed the line and congratulated Jacqui, and soon after we congratulated Casey, who came in at about 2:56.  Her last-minute bib wasn't picked up by any of the course mats, so race officials had to manually input her time.  They added her after I told them she was missing from the awards list when I picked up my award.  For awhile they had her as 2 seconds behind me - I'd told the race officials "about 2 minutes" and think they misunderstood.  Regretfully, we were unable to finish holding hands and tie in 2:59, neither of us was able to win, and we both had to run all out!  But, after reading what Jacqui wrote about us on social media, it was very hard to be disappointed that she won.  She was also the best of us on that day, no doubt.

Further proof runners are the best (Jacqui's post)

Results + identical course splits

Course splits from the results page:

• 10k - 40:43 (6:33)
• 15k - 1:00:38 (6:30)
• 25k - 1:42:46 (6:36)
• 30k - 2:03:36 (6:37)

Rebecca was 2nd OAF in the half & Colin was 1st OA!

The story continues here.

Bass Pro First Half

Since Casey and I had a couple of different race plans, I had my eyes on the women around us from the gun.  The woman I'd identified as "fast-looking" in the marathon took off faster than us, which meant operation-start-at-6:30 pace was underway, and we settled in together with our eyes ahead.  About a half mile in I told Sean and Abby that we weren't going to be running 6:45 pace so not to go with us.  We fell in with a couple of men we know, Ben (relay) and Doug (marathon), and met another man named Lucasz, who would end up running most of the marathon with us.

Start

Guess it's pretty clear I was eyeing my competition, hah!

I was pretty sure Casey and I were in 2-3 female positions, but with the half marathoners with us it was hard to know for sure.  Around the first mile, a lead cyclist dropped in with the woman in front of us, confirming our position.  When we passed Jon at mile 2.5 he told us that we were 2-3, with the leader just ahead.  Casey and I did some debriefing and planning, and my strategy was to run 6:30ish pace and see if we could reel in the leader, then sit just behind her once we did.  Casey and I would soon realize that we did not plan very well for the scenario of us not leading; most of our pre-race strategizing consisted of "Surely no one else is going to run sub-3; we can run 6:45 pace then finish holding hands, split the money, and our picture will be in Runners World", haha!  Our fantasies did not have this other woman ahead of us from the gun.

Casey and I had run the half marathon course for our long run the week before the race, and I kept thinking how race day really just felt like an uptempo long run with Casey!  The weather was beautiful, 6:30ish felt good, and we were optimistic.  We chatted with each other and the men around us, being positive and probably funny/dumb.

We slowly pulled the leading woman in, and when we caught her we fell in stride with her.  I thought it was too early to pass when we didn't have a time goal, though Casey was pushing/surging and I wasn't sure what was happening (we later learned that we had different strategies and we probably should have discussed things beforehand instead of taking for granted that no one else would run sub-3!).  I tried to send Casey some psychic messages and at one time tried to get her to read my lips, but we weren't on the same page, and we ended up just all 3 running pretty much side by side.  We met the other woman, Jacqui, and she probably thought we were a little much - if you've been around us together you'll understand (especially if you have road tripped with us, haha!).  We think we are hilarious anyway!

Power of the pack

We had a nice little group, including the lead female cyclist and several men.  We bantered and enjoyed the miles.  One of the guys asked the lead cyclist to turn on some music and he put on slow instrumental stuff and all I could think was that I hoped he wasn't playing that during the final 10k because it seemed like good music to die to!  

I was monitoring my splits after my poor pacing in Milwaukee, and I was interested in keeping it as easy as the others would let me...until around mile 11 Casey mentioned that she felt good and she might want to go for a PR.  Then I was really torn; should I push to try to help her to a PR or sit back and let the others set the pace?  I mentioned waiting until after Southern Hills, the hilliest part of the course from about miles 12-17, to crank it down, but I wasn't really sure what any of us were doing!

We got to know Jacqui, including learning that she normally does marathons after swimming 2.4 miles and biking 116 (i.e., she is an Ironman Triathlete), her sister ran in the 2016 and 2020 marathon trials, and she has known my friend Julie - who I met by running most of Bass Pro 2010 with her - since childhood.  Such a small world!  Whenever I meet my competitors I almost always really like them.

We hit mile 13 in about 1:26 - there wasn't a half mark or mat, and our lead cyclist said "about 1:27 for the half" and I proceeded to argue with him that it was a high 1:26, haha!  It seemed like everyone felt great at that point, and we were all in good spirits.  Casey and I were enjoying seeing familiar faces along the route and feeling like we were just on a workout or long run together.  Our cyclist told us we were by far the most interesting female race that Bass Pro has had - usually there is a clear and dominant leader, not a pack of 3 through halfway.

The story continues here.

Bass Pro Pre-Race

My race overview is here.

There is a lot to be said for running a marathon close to home!  The day before the race my running group met in the race expo parking lot for a shake out run before going through the expo together.  Next year I need to remember that the expo will take 3 times as long as I expect, because I run into so many amazing local runners to talk to!  We all got our packets, took some group photos, and commented that this years shirts were the best they'd ever had.  I then returned home by noon for a lot of laying around, cleaning, laundry, reading, foam rolling, and eating.

Daylight savings time ended at 2:00 a.m. on race morning, meaning that my 4:15 a.m. alarm would have felt like 5:15 a.m., but I was wide awake by 3:00 a.m.  I ended up reading and dozing a little more on the couch before getting up to eat breakfast, finish some laundry, get into my race attire, and do some mobility before leaving my house solo at 5:50 a.m. (Jon and Albani came a little later).  I drank UCAN on the drive to the race.

My Miles from Mentor group met for photos at 6:15 a.m., and I did all of my usual pre-marathon routines including 10-15 minutes of easy jogging, drills, light strides, changing shoes, sipping UCAN, and shedding my warm ups.  I was with my friends throughout the process, which kept it relaxed and fun.  Not having a time goal always makes me more relaxed as well!

I couldn't choose a favorite!

10 minutes before the start, Casey realized that she didn't have her bib number!  She asked me who she should talk to, and I sent her back to registration (which was on a different side of the gigantic building than the start), while Abby and I took all of her stuff to Abby's car and fretted about Casey making it back in time!  I tend to get on this starting line at the last minute because you can, and Abby and I popped into the corral around 6:56.  The National Anthem started, and as it neared an end, Casey jumped into the corral with us.  I think I may have been more stressed about the situation than she was, and we were all SO glad she made it back in time!  She had her phone on her since she hadn't made it back to her car, but I told her she could toss it to Jon and Albani at mile 2.5, when I'd also be tossing them my car key (which was preplanned, because with carrying 4 gels I didn't have room for the key fob too!).

I'd scoped out our competition during the National Anthem, and there was one fast looking lady wearing a marathon bib near us.  The others up front were in the half, but I pointed out the marathon lady and told Casey I expected she was our competition.  To complicate things further, Casey and I had told half runners Abby and Sean that we'd pace them at 6:45 pace until the races split around mile 10 IF no other women went out faster than that.

Writing this now, it seems like there was a lot going on, but really it was extremely laid back.  There is something about being on your home turf for a race!  My running group runs parts of this course all the time, particularly in October, and for me familiarity = comfortable.

The story continues here.

There's something about Bass Pro!

The overview:

I love running 2 marathons off of one training cycle, and my hometown race Bass Pro was #2 for this season!

Based on how I was feeling going into the race, I lined up with the goal of placing as high as possible with an effort of less than 100%, if possible.  My friend and training buddy Casey was also going into her second marathon of the season with a similar attitude.  We both wanted to keep our times under 3:00, and we thought the perfect day would be us running side-by-side for 26.2, finishing holding hands while tying for overall female in 2:58-2:59, and splitting the 1st + 2nd place prize money 50/50.  We also knew that while it's rare any women run sub-3:00 at Bass Pro, it was possible that others would be in the mix and we'd have to run faster to try for the win we hoped for.  

Our "speed limit" for going out was 6:30 pace; if another woman went out faster than our hoped for 6:45 pace, we would go out at 6:30 pace and gauge from there.  From the gun, a woman jumped into the lead, so Casey and ran together and with a couple of men at ~6:30, not far behind her for the first ~5 miles of the race.  When we pulled up with the woman (Jacqui), we invited her to join our group and the three of us ended up spending most of the race together!  We had the lead female cyclist with us, and he and another cyclist kept telling us that the women's race had never been so intriguing - usually there is a clear and dominant leader.  The three of us joked, bonded, and laughed for miles.  At various times, one person was slightly ahead or another slightly behind, but there was no clear leader for most of the race.  I think it went back and forth on who felt the best and who felt the worst - who was pushing and who was hanging on.  I really couldn't get a read on how the race was going to play out, though during my feeling good spurts I'd think "I'm going to win this marathon" and during my rough spots I'd think "third is still podium!"  I also thought that if Casey won, I was still winning since I've been coaching her this year.

Top 3

When the three of us passed mile 20 side by side, it seemed like everyone felt good enough that anything could happen.  I train with Casey so I know she is strong, and we'd learned that Jacqui was an Ironman Triathlete, meaning her endurance is insane.  Around mile 21, Casey dropped back a bit, and after Jacqui and I passed 22 I felt her absence.  Jacqui and I were both fighting through that end-of-the-marathon fatigue, and passed mile 23 side-by-side.  Shortly after, I really started feeling it in a way that kind of snuck up on me, and I had to fight to maintain contact with Jacqui.  She opened up a small gap on me going through a muddy tunnel, and as hard as I tried I couldn't close it.  I played mind games with myself and tried surging back, but my legs weren't responsive.

Anything can happen at the end of the marathon, but as the gap grew and the distance to the finish decreased, it became more and more likely I was taking home the silver.  I felt like I didn't have much in reserves, and the end of this race can be a trip for me - the course is incline, turn, incline, turn, repeat for the final 2 miles.  I've had both strong finishes and struggles for those 2 miles, and this year was the latter.  I did what I could to get in as quickly as I could, and managed a big smile when I heard Jon cheering for me on the final stretch.  There was no finishing clock, so I didn't know what my time was, but I was hopeful I'd finished under the age 41 state record of 2:57:00.  I did, in an official time of 2:54:26 - especially fulfilling after I kept missing the half record and narrowly missed the 10k record!  Missouri keeps single age state records, but my time is the fastest of any age 40+ so I'm calling it the masters record too.

The man behind me, Lukasz, ran
most of the race with us too! 

I'd have loved to have run faster (wouldn't we all, always?!), but I knew before the race started that I didn't have a 2:4x in my legs for this one.  I stand by running two marathons off of one cycle, and I'll explain more thoughts in a later post.  This was my fastest Bass Pro time by almost 5 minutes, and also consecutive sub-3 #14 for me.  Be thankful for what you have, and you'll end up having more - this is a lesson I remind myself of often and have difficulty practicing in relation to my running - but it is so true!

Many in my running group had fantastic results at Bass Pro events, which sweetened the day.  Casey was 3rd overall female in the marathon in 2:56 (her second fastest marathon ever, 6 weeks after her PR), Colin was first overall in the half in 1:15 (huge PR), Rebecca was second overall female in the half in 1:24 (huge PR), Amy won her age group in the half, and Abby and Sean got in good half efforts during the throes of marathon training.

Official results are here.

Two news articles about the race are here and here.

My Strava activity is here.

More details:

• Pre-Race
• First Half 
• Second Half
• Reflections 
• Backstory (posted before the race)

We take this stuff very seriously

Bass Pro Backstory

I planned to run the Bass Pro Marathon when I scheduled my fall 2021 season.  I love running two marathons off of one training cycle, and it was a great fit as a B race 5 weeks after my A race in Milwaukee.  Bass Pro starts less than 20 minutes from my house and generally has perfect weather.  I've run the full 3 times before (the half also 3 times), and each time I have loved participating in my hometown race.  If I don't race it, I spectate it, because it's always fun to be involved!

After the warm, humid day that was Milwaukee, I started thinking that I could try to PR at Bass Pro, or at least run in the high-2:40s.  The course isn't fantastic, but it is also not bad (mediocre would be a good adjective here).  When I ran my current PR on a great course I had an 18 mph headwind to contend with for most of the second half of the race, so I thought maybe I could squeak by if the weather was perfect and I found someone to pace with.  Bass Pro is also small, so running solo is quite likely!

Then I went on a mission to try to get my friends Andrew and Colin to run the marathon.  They both didn't get the opportunity to show their fall 2021 marathon fitness due to warm races, at Chicago and Prairie Fire.  Andrew was interested but unsure if he could make it work, and Colin was already entered in the Bass Pro half and wanted to stick with that distance (he also has a big half PR in him at the moment!).

A couple of weeks after my "I'm going to knock Bass Pro out of the park" crusade, I started feeling like I didn't want to do that after all.  That's a rare feeling for me so left me concerned, and I figured if I didn't want to run it, I shouldn't.  I hadn't registered yet so it was truly nothing lost if I didn't.  However, I soon realized I had another option: to run it without going for a time in the 2:40s, also including pacing with one of my running buddies, Casey.

God's plan must have been to lead me to this, because once I decided that's what I was doing, I grew very excited about the race!  It's really fun to run your hometown marathon!  Andrew also decided 2 days before the marathon that he didn't want to run it.  Had I been gunning for a PR, that would have really thrown me, but in the current scenario it was fine.

So, current status = happy with the plan, but if all of those other things hadn't happened I wouldn't have been.  I hope to marathon PR-chase again soon, but tomorrow is not the day for that.  Tomorrow I'll chase that runners high and podium spot, but mostly just enjoy the magic that is the Springfield running community!

Garmin Kansas City Half Marathon: Hills & Thrills & What Could Go Wrong?

The short:

I continued my year of running races I've avoided because they aren't fast courses [or weather, or fields] at the Kansas City Half Marathon on October 16.  If I'd have known how hard the new course was, I probably wouldn't have run it, but I'm glad I was unaware because it was a fun experience!  I was 2nd overall female to my fast 26-year-old friend Jessi, and I missed the age 40 state record that I wanted by 21 seconds, but I really don't think I could have done anything differently to get those seconds on that course 13 days post-marathon.  My time was 1:24:06 on the hilliest half course I've ever run (over 800 ft of gain), which is probably equivalent to a high-1:21 on a flat course.  I was also reminded how very lucky I am to have running friend connections in the Kansas City area.

Race results are here.

My Strava activity is here.

Fast friends

The long:

Why not race a hilly half 13 days after a marathon?  I've run the Kansas City Half Marathon multiple times before - 8, I think - although not frequently in recent years (2015 and 2017 details).  After I narrowly missed the age 40 state half record of 1:23:45 in 80-90 degrees at Rock the Parkway in August, I started thinking about running this race to try for it - several times I have broken the single age record for my age at Rock the Parkway, but usually that race is in April.  I go to Kansas City monthly for work, so I scheduled my work trip for the 2 days prior to this race, and planned to race it if I recovered well from Milwaukee, or to pace the 1:35 group with my friend Andrew if I didn't.  I started getting excited about racing it about 5 days before, which was my cue that I was recovered enough to give it a go.

I met my friend Jessi, who lives in Kansas City, for a run a couple of days before the race and she mentioned that she was also running the half.  Jessi is a 1:15 half marathoner, so I knew I was racing for 2nd, even though she insisted she was not in top shape and was going to try to run with me.  I looked forward to her company for however many miles we could share.  I met my friend Andrew on Friday morning for a run on part of the course, including the monster hill that was mile 6.  Andrew, who lives in the area, told me that the course was the hilliest it's ever been, and "the perfect weather we are getting is wasted on this course", hah!

I was going to race in this but Jessi
talked me into a sports bra (which was
the correct choice, with gloves)

On race morning we did have perfect running weather: about 40 degrees and light wind.  I parked about a half mile from the start by Jessi, Andrew, and Josh.  We all warmed up together, and lamented about why we couldn't have had that weather for our recent marathons (Andrew and Josh ran Chicago the previous weekend).  We lined up in partial darkness for the 7:00 a.m. start, and I felt relaxed and ready to just see what happened.  I planned to run by effort and to go out conservatively, unsure what the course elevation would do to my splits, but knowing that it would not make them even.

Jessi and I went out together, and were out front for the women right away.  We had two cyclists near us, who told us they were there to help us through the course.  We talked a little bit, and the first 3 miles went by fairly quickly.  They were mostly light incline, with one steep hill that was about 150 m long.  My legs didn't love that but it was over quickly.  Overall I felt okay; not wonderful but not bad.  I didn't look at my splits, but Jessi was checking with each watch beep so I knew she knew where we were at, and I'd told her I hoped to average about 6:15 if the course was similar to in the past.  Miles 1-3 were 6:31, 6:25, 6:17 (grade-adjusted about 6:23, 6:13, 6:08). Mile 4 was pretty flat, and our split was 6:07 (grade-adjusted 6:05).  Mile 5 had a ton of drop, and before the race I'd told Jessi that we'd probably run it in 5:50 but that mile 6 would be 6:50 so it would even out.  We ended up running mile 5 in 5:45 (grade-adjusted 6:03, but it felt much easier), then we started up the 140+ ft climb that was mile 6.

I could tell Jessi felt better than me on that long hill, and I tried to stay with her but she gapped me a bit.  I ran mile 6 in 6:47 (grade-adjusted 6:09).  That was the first point in the race that I felt residual fatigue from my marathon.  I generally recover quickly from marathons, and this one was no different, but hills hit me in a different way!  I was able to pull back up with Jessi briefly after the long hill, but when the flat/decline stretch ended, she pulled ahead again on the next uphill as my legs protested the hill.  I aimed to keep an even effort, reminding myself that she had gone out very conservatively for her and would likely run a huge negative split.  Miles 7 and 8 were 6:15 and 6:04 for me.

At mile 8, we began a climb that would last until 10.5.  I felt fine on the flats and declines, but my legs were done with the uphills.  At this point, I could no longer be blissfully unaware, because we were running the old (~2007-2015) course backwards.  The final 2.5 miles of that course were always so fast because they were all downhill, though of course you'd earned it with the early climbs.  I never wanted to run up that business, but I found myself in that position this year and even worse I knew exactly what was happening!  The cyclist with me was super encouraging, which helped because I was in no man's land.  I could see men ahead of me, but until I crested the climb at 10.5, I didn't have the strength to think about pulling them in.  I lost a lot of time during this section, with splits of 6:25, 6:52, and 6:39.  Grade-adjusted they were pretty consistent at 6:15ish, but the 2.5 mile climb took a lot out of me.

Miles 12 and 13 flattened out, with some decline.  I felt much better and began chasing down the man in front of me.  At the mile 12 sign I took a look at the total time on my watch, and according to my (apparently incorrect) math, I thought I was going to break the record if I ran the last mile in 6:15 or under.  I'd hoped to have more wiggle room than that, but I knew I could run the final mile faster than that if it didn't have hills.  I was gaining on a man, and kept telling myself that if I caught him I'd get the record.  The encouraging cyclist was telling me it was time to start my kick, and I pushed with all I had left.  I caught the man just before the final turn on the course.  I had a split second of being proud of myself for catching him before he turned left with the marathoners and I turned right with the half...therefore I was kicking and he was nearing his halfway point, hah.  My legs were done, and of course there was yet another hill to get to the finish.  I passed the mile 26 sign for the marathon, willing my legs up the final 0.2.  My mile 12 and 13 splits were 6:07 and 6:12.  The final stretch seemed to take forever, my kick didn't seem very good, and the finishing clocks were on the 5k and 10k, so I couldn't see my time.  I tried to smile as I came through and the announcer said my name, but it might have been more of a grimace.  I stopped my watch a few seconds after I finished, and saw that I'd missed the record.

Finishing grimace/smile

Post-race, I found Jessi, the half female champ, and Chandler, who won the 10k.  We reunited with Josh before too long, and jogged back to our cars, me holding a bag full of water, bananas, chips, and my finishers medal.  After changing our shoes, putting on more clothes, and reconnecting with Andrew, we set off on a cool down.  The combination of the race's hills and standing around in the cold for a little longer than I should have before starting to run again made my legs very unhappy, but I got in 4+ more slow miles for the morning to round out 20 for the day...because this season isn't quite over yet!  Then it was onto brunch with Jessi.  We joked that we wanted one of everything on the menu, billed to the Kansas City Marathon for the top 2 female half finishers - wouldn't that be a great race award?

Preparing to cool down

This course slowed everyone down, but I think it hurt me more, relatively, since I was 13 days off a marathon.  I think I faired alright, but that I'd have done better, again relatively, on a flat course.  It's a lot easier to run fatigued on flatness than on elevation, a concept I'll remember the next time I schedule a race under similar circumstances.  I wouldn't have finished ahead of Jessi no matter what (she ran 1:21:37, including powering up that long hill and several sub-6:00 miles in her second half), so I placed as well as I could have.  I knew I wouldn't run super fast, but I know I could've gotten the state record on the old course that had about 520 ft of elevation gain - that extra 300 ft was a lot to add to an already hilly course!  It's disappointing when your best on the day isn't enough, but at the end of the day, it was big training day at about marathon pace on a route I'd never choose for a marathon pace workout.  The current age 40 record is going to stand, but I'm coming after the age 41 record after October 26!

Milwaukee Marathon: The Racecation

Christian and I rock at racecationing!  Here is what we did:

Friday, 10/1:

• The drive (we really only stopped to pee, but we had a great time together in the car!)
• The Historic Third Ward
• Milwaukee Riverwalk
• Milwaukee Public Market (dinner at Pitaworks for me)

Saturday 10/2:

• Collectivo Coffee
• Art Museum Area
• Sculpture Walk
• Milwaukee Boat Tour
• Cheese shopping
• Cafe Hollander for lunch
• Race expo and elite meeting
• The Piggly Wiggly (don't ask, hah!)

Sunday 10/3:

• The Marathon and awards ceremony
• Brady Street Pet Parade
• MKE Games for lunch and games
• Mitchell Park Domes
• Bradford Beach
• Black Cat Alley
• Crossroads Collective (Indian food dinner for me)
• Purple Door Ice Cream (salted caramel ice cream for me)

Monday 10/4:

• Stoney Creek Coffee
• Boswell Books
• Old North Point Water Tower
• Bobblehead Hall of Fame
• Historic Third Ward
• Milwaukee Public Market (Aladdin Taste of the East for me)
• Lakefront Brewery Tour
• The Basilica of Josaphat

Tuesday 10/5: 

• The drive home, including celebrating Christian's birthday with stops near Chicago for sweets
• The Cake House
• Leila Love Patisserie Macaroons Shop

All vacation photos can be viewed here.  The only thing better than traveling to a race is traveling to a race plus a vacation!

Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon: The Aftermath

The story continues from here.

After I crossed the finish line, the race director Scott, who I'd met at the elite meeting, told me he'd see me at 12:15 at the awards with a check!  One of the volunteers gave me the choice of a heat sheet or jacket, and I thought they were giving jackets to everyone until I saw that it said "top finisher" on it and that only 5 others had one.

I was photographed by the race officials and made my way though the chute to find my honorary coach Christian.  I know it's difficult to watch a marathon you were supposed to run, so my heart really went out to her, and she was such a great help with driving to the start, carrying my bag, taking pictures, etc. - not to mention exceptionally fun to vacation with!

Scott, the race director, was AWESOME

Top 5 (from left to right 2, 3, 4, 5, 1)

The awards ceremony began with the top 5 overall females, and when I was on the stage they told me not to leave because they'd be calling me back up for masters.  When they were announcing masters and got to me, they said something like, "Even though Sara was also in the top 5 overall, the judges also decided to give her 1st masters" (typically top finishers are taken out of masters, or alternatively given the best monetary award out of the two, which in this case was 3rd overall).  I'm not sure who these judges are, but I like them!  This race was also the Wisconsin RRCA State Marathon Championships, so I got another award for winning masters in that.  The Wisconsin resident awards were cuter, but the judges didn't give this Missouri girl that one, hah!  Also, fun fact - the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon and I are both 40!

Top 3 masters

I learn things from every marathon, and my big take-away from this one is that if the weather is poor, I should use my watch early on instead of running by feel.  I went out at an effort that felt sustainable for 26.2 miles, and in hindsight my early pace was about what I think I could do in great weather.  Clearly, it was not the correct pace for this race, and had I been watching my splits I would have known that and dialed it back.  Alternatively, I could have gone out at 50k effort and probably fared well.  It's been a very long time since I've run a warm marathon (since Heart of America 2010, I believe), but I will be more prepared to execute it well when it happens again.  On the other hand, I think I'd have overheated either way in this race, and I struggle with negative splitting anything in warm temps, so I'm not sure if I'd have run much faster with a more conservative start under the circumstances.  I'm proud that I put myself in there with the female field and wasn't scared to go out to try to win the thing, even though I was unable to.  I am pumped that I set the masters course record.  My time was 8-10 minutes slower than I think I could do in good conditions, which isn't terrible considering the weather, but the way I ran it left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth.  

This is the year to not worry about times, though!  We don't know for sure when the 2024 OTQ window will open yet, but we do know it's not mimicking past cycles (if it was, it would have opened last month).  If it opens next fall and the time is potentially achievable for me (e.g., not something like 2:38), that will be the time to worry about times!  I would love to PR in the meantime, but I also know it's not going to happen in 70 degree weather so had no expectations for it in this race, though my training cycle was very similar to what I ran before Indy 2019 so under different circumstances I'd have had bigger time goals.  But, I can't wait to do 26.2 again...and as per usual, I think I have a faster one in me, God-willing!

Racecation details are here.

Stuff

Lake Michigan

This doesn't adequately depict my
level of soaked-ness

#rabbitelite

Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon: The Back Half

The First Half story is here.

From when I lost the third female cyclist before the half, I had a hope in my mind that I'd get a cyclist back.  This came to fruition around mile 15-16 when one of the ladies who'd been leading came back to me real quick (she was walking).  Moving from 4th to 3rd gave me a boost.

Just after this, the sky opened a torrential downpour on us, which did not give me a boost!  At least it wasn't windy, but running in heavy rain was not the best.  I commiserated with a man I was running by, and kept pushing onward.  He joked that now that I was in third I couldn't call it in, but no one cared if he walked (he didn't, and actually finished just in front of me).  The rain lasted 2-3 miles, and needless to say I was drenched.  My friend Amy wrote a blog post about her Milwaukee race, and so much of what she said resonated with me!  My race went downhill after the monsoon too.

The man on the right is the one I
commiserated the monsoon with

After the rain cleared, the sun came out.  Although the first 15 miles of the race were warm, it was cloudy, which was a saving grace, but the end was mostly sunny.  I was feeling average, but I was excited about being in 3rd and blissfully unaware of my gradual slow down.  Around mile 20, my cyclist escort told me that I had a 100-200 meter lead on 4th, which made me a bit nervous because I wasn't feeling fantastic.  I knew I'd fight for it if she came up on me, but I didn't feel super confident about holding anyone off at that point.  

However, the miles continued to pass pretty quickly and I continued to pick off men during the final 10k.  According to the race stats, I passed 7 men from 20 to the finish (and 1 passed me, which occurred in the final mile), which now I think is kind of crazy considering how much I was slowing down, but at the time I took as a sign I was finishing strong, haha!  Later when I looked at other runners' results that Strava linked to mine, I saw my positive split (1:23:55/1:29:51) was less than any of the guys around me, which made me feel a little better about it.  The fly and die method is generally a more painful way to run a marathon, and when I see significant positive splits I think "that must have been soooo miserable", but I didn't suffer any more than any other marathon.  Maybe my high mileage training conditioned me to tolerate it better, or maybe since it was weather-related it was differently painful.

I think these two shots were around 20

In the final miles, I was ready to be finished like the end of every marathon, but nothing unusual.  I counted down the miles and pushed with what I had.  At mile 25, the cyclist told me I had nothing to worry about, which I don't think was accurate since 4th finished only 23 seconds behind me!  But because of that and since I knew I wasn't going to move up, I relaxed in the last mile instead of pushing, and made sure to smile the whole way.  It was my slowest mile (7:05) and my only mile in the 7's, but I expected it to be because I did ease up and enjoy instead of push.

Finishing stretch

As I neared the finish, I crossed a timing mat and then heard the announcer say my name and that I was the third female finisher.  My smile likely got even larger, and I ended up with the best set of professional race pictures that I've ever had (even without wearing sunglasses, gasp!)!  I wasn't sure how to celebrate since I didn't win, so a thumbs up was what happened.

The story continues here...

See man I ran with during the monsoon with the
race medics in this photo