Vermont City Marathon Race Review, Part 2

Note: My review is based on the last 13.1 miles, as I participated in a two-person relay with my mom. Last year I ran the first 13.1 so we decided to change places and switch it up this year. And because this is so long, I'm breaking it up into three parts: pre-race week, race morning and the race itself. Sorry!

I woke up Sunday morning at 6:00, after my alarm went off several times and had a wake-up call from my mom. Of course Jack slept in- he was still sleeping when I left the house at 6:45 (the morning after the marathon, though, he was up at 5:00). Picked up my mom and Tom and headed downtown. We wanted to have plenty of time to meet up with family at Beansie's Bus- we meet in this spot every year.

My mom had to rush, though, and get in the porta-potty line then quickly grab her stuff from me and line up at the start. At this point, it was chilly and started raining. Our group dispersed and Aunt Mary and I hung around, watched the start then headed over to catch the bus to take us to Oakledge Park- about 2 miles away-where the two-person relay handoff is.

At this point, I was surprisingly un-nervous and arrived at Oakledge and Melissa arrived soon after. We hung out under a pavillion, drank some water and even got to see the first runners come through. They might need to mark this section a little better, because the 2nd male almost made a wrong turn coming through Oakledge onto the bikepath. Luckily, those watching yelled to him that he was going the wrong way.

We walked further up to the handoff spot. Aunt Mary went to meet her partner and I got in the line to use the bathroom. This is when I started to get really nervous, because the line was moving so slowly. I didn't want to miss my mom coming in.

Finally I got to go and went to the handoff, first I managed to get kicked in the stomach by an overzealous stretching runner. Ugh. The handoff was pretty chaotic. Runners kept coming in, and since I'm short, I was straining to see my mom. I saw her! I yelled her name, we gave a quick hug, exchanged the bracelet and I was off.

Half Mary #5 Photos

Waiting for Mommy...

I'm here! But Jack's asleep...

Calling All Crazies

Happy Memorial Day! I hope everyone is able to relax and enjoy this day and give thanks to all who have and are serving our country.

I was hoping to bring Jack to the Vergenne's Memorial Day Parade today, but it started at 11:00, and he was up this morning at 5:00 so by 10:00 he was ready for a nap.

Quality Nap > Parade

We are heading over to Adam's parents this afternoon. His sister is visiting with her kids and they have a great big porch with comfy chairs and ice cold beer calling my name.

During my pre-half marathon high, I signed up for another half marathon on July 10.

It's the first running of this sure-to-be hilly race. There is a full marathon, half and relay. Any other crazies out there want to join me?!? I hope it's a good race- entry fee was a little steep and they are cleaning spending a ton of $ on their marketing campaign.

I've heard great things about Hal Higdon's plans and loosely followed his intermediate half training plan (mixed with a Runner's World plan). I've been reading some of his info regarding back-to-back marathons (had a hard time finding info on back-to-back half mary plans). He offers some great advice:

1. Plan your schedule early
2. Don't ignore rest
3. Try shorter events
4. Don't run all marathons hard
5. Take time to prepare

(Full article)

Although a half is much different than a full, I think these same rules will still apply, with the exception of less (hopefully) recovery time and only (hopefully) having one week taper.

Source

I'm using his "Six Weeks Between Marathons" plan, doctored a little bit (great graphic design skills, huh?). Many runners I know do not (and dislike) following training plans / schedules. I, on the other hand, LOVE training plans. I love having the schedule to follow and base my runs around. Of course there is always leeway, as with any plan, because things come up and runs need to be rescheduled, shifted and cancelled sometimes. One of the reasons I like using training plans is because they are based on knowledge. Hal Higdon has much more knowledge about running safely and successfully than I do, and I trust what he has to say.

On the other hand, I probably would not trust a training plan from Kara Goucher. I am a Kara lover, but as I'm currently reading her book, I'm finding some not-so-great advice. I think I'll do a book review when I'm finished it.

Okay, so back to back-to-back half marathons. Does anyone have any advice for running back to back half marathons?

Vermont City Marathon Race Recap

I was so excited and full of adrenaline this morning, and was so eager to get to Battery Park. Picked my mom and Tom up and headed down and met up with the rest of the family (at the usual meeting place- Beansie's Bus). Everyone headed to the start and Aunt Mary and I hung around since we were both running the second leg. We watched the start and then boarded the bus to Oakledge Park and waited for our teammates to come in. We got to see the first marathoners come through, which is always amazing to watch. It was great to spend some time with Aunt Mary and chat and catch up. It's rare to have time like this to hang with her with little ones usually running around!

The hand off point was a little crazy and chaotic but I was so pumped when I saw my mom come in! Her time was around 2:07. I headed off, and started very conservatively because of the heat and humidity. My plan was to run easy for the first six miles and then assess how I'm feeling. I felt great at the halfway point so I decided to just keep plugging at it. I stopped and walked at every water station because I wanted to make sure I was getting the fluids I would need. I alternated Gatorade and water and took Gu at miles five and nine.

Surprisingly, the miles flew by. According to my watch my time is 2:17. I'm feeling really good about this time, especially considering the conditions today. And it's 11 minutes off my half time from November!

Races

I've been looking over my race results from past races for some inspiration and it's helping. I'm slowly, slowly, slowly getting faster.

So, I'm going to put it all out there and show my 12 followers some of my past race results.

2006
Round Church 5K 36:38
KBVCM, ran the last leg in the relay, 5.5 miles, I don't have my time

2007
Round Church 5K 32:53
KBVCM- ran two legs in the relay, about 9 miles, I don't have my time

2008
Stowe 8 Miler 1:29
Half Marathon 2:34:36
Basin Harbor 5K results unknown
Leaf Peepers Half Marathon 2:35:33
Round Church 10K 66:05

2009
Preggers! No races for this mama

2010
KBVCM Half Marathon 2:47:37
Basin Harbor 5K 33:11
Stowe 8 Miler 1:35:27
Cider House 4 Miler 36:13
Shelburne Farms 5K 31:14
Shelburne Half Marathon 2:28:56

2011
Spring Fling 5K 27:24