Seattle Half: I have a PLAN!

I have been thinking about my Seattle Half Plan. Last year was a serious mess. I had no plan and no idea what I was in for. This was my first BIG race. While it was my 4th half marathon the others I had run were smaller, maybe 1000 people, at the biggest. Seattle was different. It was big. We are talking at least 15,000 people. So I made some serious Rookie Mistakes. I was corralled in near the back of the pack at the start line. I thought the pack would clear out, at least a little bit after they started the walkers. I thought at least half of the wad of people in front of me were walkers (WHY they start the walkers only 5 minutes before the runners is BEYOND me). When I heard the countdown for the walkers to begin I got ready to move forward. Unfortunately the wad did not budge. I waited, and waited. And waited…the wad did not move. At least 5 minutes passed and I decided I had to climb over a barricade and elbow my way into the road where the race was to start. I heard the countdown to begin our run and still it was like trying to swim in a can of sardines.

When there was finally room to begin running I RAN. I ran fast. WAY faster that I was supposed to run, faster than I had trained to run, faster than I was able to run. My pace for that race should have been around 9:30/mile. My first two miles were run at about an 8:15 pace. Big FAT OOPS. All I could think was, “I need to clear the pack!” “I have to break out of this wad of people!” It never happened. There were just too many people. I kept running, fast, so that I could break out of the pack and I thought certainly it would thin out, sooner or later. It didn’t. Not to mention I weaved my way through the crowd and most likely ran 2 miles in the first mile simply due to weaving. By mile four I was pretty tired and I hadn’t really even hit the hills yet.
But this year…THIS YEAR I have a PLAN and a new wit about me. I am running smarter this year. Here is my plan:

Beginning of the race: Get towards the front early. I won’t hang back and make the mistake of waiting for the walkers to clear out, they won’t. I will be up toward the front.

First mile: I will try to settle into my pace (if possible) and not go out too hard too fast. I know I cannot clear the pack. I will not weave like I did last year. A small amount of weaving is ok, but I will not let it get out of control.

Mile 2: Hold my pace and focus on breathing.

Water stations: It seems to work best when I actually walk through the water station. This way I actually get to hydrate and not inhale the water. In the long run this helps. (I am talking walking no more than 5 or 6 steps, just enough to drink then it is back to running).

Mile 3-13.1: Enjoy the run! There are a lot of mind-blowing hills that could easily psych me out,
but I am going to focus on my pace, my legs, my breathing, and my training. The hills will not defeat me this year.

This is my plan as of now. I may add to it as this week progresses and early next week but I feel like I have hit on the major areas that really doomed me last year.

12 Days Until Seattle Half!

Today I am grateful for:

Early morning snuggles with my Little Buddy.

My cozy Ugg boots.

Coffee!

Run Happy Peeps!