Half Marathon #10 for 2014: Frederick Running Festival

Frederick Running Festival Half Marathon
May 4, 2014
2:09:24
Fastest half marathon since 2009 AKA Master’s PR!!!

Temp: high 40s and sunny to start but quickly warmed from there

What I wore: hat, short sleeve shirt, Skirt Sports Happy Girl skirt,
PROCompression socks, Nike Elite arm sleeves, and my trusty Altra Intuitions

I LOVED this half last year, so I was afraid that I’d built it up in my head as more awesome than it was.  I also may have had a bit more to drink on Saturday night than I normally would before a race.  I also got only a couple of hours of sleep.

My plan?  Run at a consistent 10:10-10:15 pace and then really push it the last mile to see if I could PR by a few seconds.  I did exactly this for the first 5 miles. I’m not sure what happened in mile 6.  Suddenly, I found my fast legs and dropped down to a high 9 pace and stayed there for the remainder of the race, with the exception of mile 8.  Mile 8 was run in 9:15.  Umm….

The good:

• The course is awesome.  I love the varied scenery and the lightly rolling hills.
• Packet pickup: I got there at 4pm on Saturday and it was a breeze to pick up my bib and shirt.
• The weather was perfect for the first 10 miles.  I tossed Beer Geek my arm warmers at mile 3.  At mile 11, I started to get a little warm but I knew I was nearly done.
• Convenience:  I left my boss’ house at 6:2o, walked over, hit the portapotties, and was in the “corrals” with 5 minutes to spare.
• Plentiful water stops with Gatorade at every stop after the first one.  I went with early and often on the Gatorade and felt great the whole race.
• The after party always looks fun, but we have to head home, so I just grab my medal and water and head out.

The bad:

• The hill at mile 12
• The dirt track at the end.  I find it dirty and dusty and it seems to suck all the energy out of my legs.  Luckily, it’s less than a quarter of a mile distance.

The ugly:

• Nothing related to the race, but the 2am closing of the local bar necessitated closing the bedroom windows LOL.

Would I run it again?

Yes! This course did not disappoint!  I love the rolling hills and I even ran up the hills at mile 9 and 12 without slowing much at all.  Having a place to stay that’s an easy walk to packet pickup and the race does not suck either.  Frederick Running Festival continues to be my favorite half marathon and it will be on my calendar again next year!

 10 half marathons down, 3 to go!  I can almost see Venus!!!

Now go and enter my Lift Your Sole charm giveaway!!!