2014 Slacker Half Marathon

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/530317078
13.1 – 1:33:28
46th/1100 and 4th in age group 

In 2009 I ran the slacker half marathon as my first race back to the sport. I weighed about 220lbs and finished in 2:15:30. I was pretty happy with that time because a few years earlier and I couldn’t run faster than 12:00 pace for 3 miles. 2002 was the last time I was a competitive runner but even by then I had gained a fair amount of weight and lost a lot of speed. 
The slacker HM is an interesting race it starts up at 10,800ft and drops 2,300ft over 13.1 miles to Georgetown CO at 8,500ft hence the name Slacker. But that name is a little deceiving because the race also has some uphills and on any flat or uphill section you quickly remember that you are at high elevation. 

Miles 1 – 10 1:11:55 (7:11 pace) 
It was freezing at the start 28F and the roads were wet from snow that had fallen over night. During the week and the on the way to the race I decided to scrap my plans of running a 1:40. I still had some sore muscles and I was a little worried about pulling something but after a few successful workouts this week I felt confident in running 1:35. That would be a 7:15 pace but that’s not what happened when the race started I had no problem running 7:00-7:10 except on the hills. I got into this rhythm of attacking the hills and then recovering on the downhill. With every mile I felt stronger and stronger. I kept getting flashbacks of how I felt at that exact same location on the course. Each flashback ended with a tingle in my spine, my body telling me “let’s go faster” (probably adrenaline). My emotions kept growing as the race continued as well. I found my getting choked up thinking about all the battles I have overcome to get to this spot in my life. At this exact spot (mile 10) 5 years ago I was melting in the heat, my quads couldn’t handle any more downhill and I wishing for it all to end. Today I was running 3:00/mi faster and holding back, I was attacking the hills up and down and enjoying every bit of the race. I wiped away a few tears (of perhaps just sweat) and decided it was time I showed this race what I was made of, I wasn’t holding back anymore. 


Miles 11 – 13.1, last 3.1 in 21:14 (6:51 pace) 
-Mile 11 started with a portion of uphill but I was so fired that I went for broke. This would be my first sub 7 mile of the day. 
- Mile 12 had an amazing downhill with nothing uphill or even flat. If your quads survived this long then you could really crush this mile. My quads hurt a but I didn’t hold back and ran this downhill mile in 6:33 
- Mile 13 was mostly flat and this is when I remembered that I was still at 8500 ft. I was in the zone but the best I could manage was 6:57 pace. The last 0.1 was uphill and at the pace I was running it was a real lung burner. 

Post Race 
I had been feeling burned out the last few months and this race was exactly what I needed. I needed a reminder of how far I have come and why can’t stop now. I feel like I am right where I need to be to kick of my training for my goal half marathon in September. The goal is to final break the 1:30 mark. 


Elevation profile. Crazy Downhill


Here is my picture from the 2009 race at 220lbs. Race reporthttp://allenrunsfar.blogspot.com/2009/06/slacker-half-marahon.html


Uphill to the finish


It was so cold I had to wear my finisher shirt after the race around town

2014 Leadville Marathon

26.2 miles – 6:35:48 (not a PW, Last year at Pikes Peak finished in 7:03)
6,021 ft of elevation gain with the lowest point on the course at an elevation of 10,184 ft 

So this was an interesting adventure. About a month ago I realized I was in full mental burnout. I had a couple of hot long races in May that spelled doom for my trail marathon and ultra-marathon over the summer. Letting my friends know that I was out was the hardest part and they ended up convincing me to stay in the marathon, after all I was trained up for an ultra so I could easily handle a marathon… 

Trip out to Mosquito pass, miles 0 - 9 
Any marathon is tough and if your mind in the game it it’s going to be a rough day. Add to that brutal climbing and crazy elevation and you have the perfect recipe for misery. The race started in Leadville CO, which sits high in the mountains at 10,180ft. First climb on the list was 2,000ft of vertical over the first 5 miles of the race. I was walking 1 mile into the race which wasn’t too surprising and I was the only walker. My body felt fine but my mind just couldn’t seem to get into race mode. In those first 5 miles most of my friends left me in the dust. Going downhill I could easily run 90% of the time. I kept an eye on the giant pass in front of us that we would eventually have to conquer. 

Mosquito pass, miles 10 - 17 
From the aid station it was about 4 miles and 2,000ft vertical to the turnaround point. I walked up the whole thing which isn’t as easy as it sounds. Trees don’t grow above 11,500 and without them the wind was very strong and cold. It was so loud that I was unable to talk with people right next to me. Hiking became so hard that I had to start pacing myself (Hiking!). It’s a little scary when it feels like your breathing is accelerating uncontrollably (like you can’t catch your breath), it’s not a good feeling so you slow down. But I am happy that I never stopped moving, I continued on with relentless forward progress. Nearing the top I was so cold especially my hands I couldn’t wait to get off that mountain. Coming down wasn’t much easier the trail was so technical and in places covered with mud or snow. I tripped and almost went down, I caught myself but my already tired ankle and knee got twisted. They both felt funny as I spent a minute walking it off and then I was back running but now a little more cautious and slower. 



Back to town, 18 – 26.2 
Arriving back at the aid station I felt good about the race or the first time. I had survived the pass and I was heading back to town. In the back of my mind I knew I wasn’t out of the woods yet because there was big climb around 20 miles. I enjoyed the downhill this time, no more giant rocks so I could free my mind and enjoy the scenery. The climb at mile 20 was very hard even though it was only 1,000 ft again I ended up walking the majority of that section. Arriving at the final aid station I felt relived I knew the finish was 5 miles away and almost all downhill with one little blip along the way. This was my best section of the race. I recorded my fastest mile running back into town mile 26 was a blistering 8:50 (and my only sub 10 min mile). Over the last few miles of the race the clouds rolled in and about an hour or so after I finished my friends and I got snowed on at the finish line. 

Post 
While reflecting on this adventure and reading my own report I feel the burnout really shows. So many times in this race I was weak and willing to just go with the flow. This has to be the least competitive I have ever seen myself. One by one my friends passed me and I didn’t even try to chase them down. At the same time this race showed me that perhaps I am stronger than I think. For six and half hours Leadville striped me down to nothing. During that time I was more miserable than I have been in a race in a long time. But quit never crossed my mind. 


At the start of the race with my friend Tim (he won this crazy race) 
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Course Profile 



Just out of town 



Mile 9, Mosquito pass in the distance 
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Halfway up Mosquito pass 



Almost to the top 



Top of the Pass 13,170ft 



Heading down the pass 



Mile 26, fastest mile of the day 8:50!

2014 Colfax Marathon

26.2 – 3:58:48 (1:12 under my pacer target time)
Marathon #18, Colfax Marathon #4, Marathon Pacer #1 

The Colfax marathon is my favorite marathon and it’s near my home in Denver. At this point running this marathon has become a yearly ritual and I just fit other races around it even if my schedule gets ugly. This year I decided to run the Colorado marathon which is two weeks before Colfax but I figured I would be fine since I did the same thing last year (Colfax and Deadwood). Over the last 6 months I have become much more active in a local running club which supplies the pacers for the Colfax marathon. I volunteered to pace between 3:45-4:45 but asked specify if I could have the 4:00 group (9:09 pace). I felt happy and lucky when I was granted the pace group that I wanted most. A few years ago I would have killed to run a sub 4:00 now I was going to help others accomplish that same dream. 

Last year I ran 2 marathons in 14 days nearly unscaled running both within 10 minutes of my PR, 3:31 at Colfax and then 3:37 two weeks later at Deadwood. This year while attempting the same combo I felt like I pushed myself much harder at the Colorado marathon trying to get a PR. I came off of that race really beat up and dehydrated, neither of which would go away. In my experience recovery is slow painful miles that you need complete. It seems like you need a set number of miles regardless if you take time off or not (sometimes you have no choice). The next weekend I went for a 12 mile run with my friends only to have my calf locked up out on the run. I walked back the running store with my confidence in the gutter. I spent the days leading up the Colfax marathon running easy. Every run my calf felt a little better but they never got back to 100%. 

Start 0 – 6 miles 
I slept terrible the night of the race. I was so nervous and anxious, it felt like my first marathon again. Anything slower than 4:00 or faster than 3:57 would be a failure. I lined up in my corral and was immediately greeted by many strangers introducing themselves and then asking about pace strategy, aid stations my marathons stats etc. These questions carried on into the race and I didn’t mind because it was keeping my mind off my calf. The pace felt really easy which was a good confidence boost. We started a little slow because of crowding but we were on target pace by the end of mile 2. I knew we had to take advantage of the downhill over the next few miles and build up a little cushion of time. After the stadium it gets pretty hill so at best we would run on pace. As planned at the Broncos stadium (mile 6) our group came in around 1 minute ahead of schedule. 

7 – 16 miles 
Right after running thought the stadium the course creeps uphill for the next 9 miles. On the first hill I could again feel that twitchy calf. It felt like every step could be my last. On the flats the feeling would go away but I couldn’t stop thinking about how quickly those cramps came on and ended my run the week before. Today that I could not happen because I would probably really hurt myself by continuing on to the finish. Talking with runners again helped my put that into the back on my mind. I warned the group that the toughest part of the race is miles going up a big hill around mile 16. Every year that I have run this race this location has been my toughest spot. I forgot my own advice and at the bottom of this hill I gave my pace flag to another runner and said “I got to hit the bathroom can you keep pace for a bit?” Once I started running again I looked up the hill and couldn’t see my group and then I panicked. I charged up the hill and caught them within a mile, I think I had to run about 8:00 min pace to do this up that darn hill and beats me up every year. The good news was I caught them at the top of the hill so I could now rest the bad news my calf was screaming at me. During this hilly section time we ran right on pace keeping our 1 minute cushion. 

17 – 21 miles 
This next section is an awesome its 4 miles of gentle downhill. I didn’t enjoy that downhill so much this time around. I knew that we had to take advantage of this downhill and get a little more time in the bank. I didn’t want to speed up but that’s what the group needed. We picked up the pace by about 10 seconds per mile and by the time we passed though the stadium at mile 20 we earn another minute. My calf was crying with each step. A few times I contemplated passing on my flag and letting the group go without me but I couldn’t, I committed to a time and I was going to meet it that time if it killed me. At mile 20 I let the group know that we had a 2 minute cushion and if you feel good go for it and if you feel like crap you can run 9:30’s and still break 4:00. 


22 – Finish 
Our group went silent. The folks with energy to talk pulled away and the rest of us suffered in silence. I wanted to be a good cheerleader but I was suffering in silence too. Any other day I would have called it off miles ago and walked into the finish. But today it wasn’t about me and I had a job to do. My friend AL coordinates the pace groups and over the last few months I have become good friends with him. His personality reminds me a lot of my grandfather (AL is a little younger). But this is also why it was so much harder to back off when I was hurt. I thought a lot about AL in those final miles I kept thinking “I promised AL I would hit that time so I better hit that time”. The last few miles of a marathon always hurt but this one hurt more that it should. Over the last few miles the group lost almost 1 minute but that what I was expecting. In the final miles our group swelled as we caught up to runners that had fallen off their pace. At this point in the race no one was happy to see me I kept hearing “Ah crap the 4:00 guy caught us”. My calf continued to feel on the verge of injury but it held strong. Crossing the finish line felt amazing almost like it was my first. My watch read 3:58, success. 

Post race 
I was immediately meet by runners thanking me for keeping pace. Everyone had a unique story to tell me about their race. Some had not ran with me but kept me in their sights the whole race. Also at the finish were tons of my friends from the running club. They all wanted to ensure me that I was crazy for taking on a 4:00 marathon 2 weeks after coming within 1 min of my marathon PR. A television crew interviewed me another pacer. I also bumped into countless old friends and even my high school cross country coach. It was my best post-race experience ever. 

This is the majority of the full and half pacers 
 

Mile 20, you can just see the hurt. The longer the race went on the lower that sign was. AL said he was worried when he saw me at mile 25 nearly dragging the sign. 
 

Happy to have finished 
 

My friend Bruce completed his first marathon. He ran with my pace group for a good portion of the race. Next time he will have no problem getting under 4:00 
 

2014 Mothers Day in Denver

Last week I talked about how hot it was at the end of the marathon. It was probably in the 70’s which is hot for a race, later in the day it did get up into the 80’s. One week later the high on Sunday was around 40 with lots of snow. It snowed all mother’s days and most of Monday too, this weekend when I pace the temps will be back into the 70’s.

2014 Mothers Day in Denver

2014 Colorado Marathon

26.2 miles - 3:27:53 

Comparing this race to my PR marathon I am not as fit, I weight 10 lbs more and the weather was much hotter (I don’t do well in the heat) yet I was able to come with in 1 minute of that PR time. How is this possible? The course might be part of it because it has lot of downhill but the heat probably canceled out that benefit. I think the biggest change is my confidence, I wanted a PR and I was willing to risk hitting the wall to get that time. In the past I have been too conservative and scared that I don’t run to my potential. 

Miles 0 – 16, 2:04:06 – 7:45 pace (900ft of elevation loss) 
10 minutes before the race I got to meet Bill Rogers. This race is a beautiful point to point course that starts up in the canyon and runs all the way back to town. The only down side to this is you have to catch a 4:30am bus which meant I was up around 3:30am. I knew it was going to be a warm day when it was already 55F at the start (usually under 40F). The race had 1300ft of elevation loss and 900ft of that was in the canyon. The downhill weren’t steep it was just perfect amount of downhill. I felt like I was coasting down and round the corners. The scenery in the canyon was amazing and the walls kept us in perpetual shade. During these early miles I felt great and little warm but happy that I was clicking off the miles. My watch wasn’t so happy in the canyon I had to rely on overall time and mile markers (old school). My original goal was to run 3:20 pace to give myself a little room for a PR. At times I ran at that pace (7:38 ) but I could tell it was over my threshold because I would get out of breath. I decide to slow down a bit, 10 seconds per mile (7:48 ) felt so much easier and was still on pace for a PR. In case you’re wondering I do spend my marathons endlessly calculating pace times, finish times and what if times. 

Mile 17-20, 4 miles at 7:48 pace (225ft of elevation gain, 100ft of elevation loss)
Coming out of the canyon we were no longer shaded in fact now we were completely exposed for the rest of the race. Spectators are not allowed in the canyon so many of them wait at the bottom. I was happy greeted by a wall of spectators as we ran up the first hill of the race. This section contained a few hills that weren’t all that big but when you hit them at 7:40 pace they can put you in the red zone real quick. I remember checking my watch at the 20 mile marker and saw 2:35 my fastest ever in a race or training. In my head I said “you got this”. My friend Alex was also at 20 so I got a double boost of energy. 

Mile 21-24, 3 miles at 8:08 pace (150ft of elevation loss) 
But then everything started to come apart. I actually started to slow down on mile 20 but I told myself that I just needed a mile or two to recover. I ran about 7:55 for 20 and 21 a little off pace but this was just the start of bad. The heat was really bothering me and I realized I was in trouble. I couldn’t calculate needed times anymore and I ran past my family at mile 22. I have never run past my family without noticing them, I was so focused on putting one foot in front of the other. I ran miles 22 and 23 in 8:09 and 8:21. I didn’t know if a PR was still possible I didn’t care I just wanted to finish and end the pain. 

Mile 25-26.2, 2.2 miles at 8:58 pace (150ft of elevation loss) 
I don’t remember much about these last few miles other then I was hot and miserable. My muscles had gone stiff and I felt like each step could set off a cramp. I didn’t walk, I didn’t look at my watch I just kept moving forward. I told myself “I can do anything for 20 minutes” I ran mile 25 and 26 in 8:34 and 9:21 with my finishing kick 0.2 also around 9:00 pace. 

Post race 
I am happy with my finish time which ended up being 0:58 off my 3:26:55 PR. But I had the guts to go for it and commit to a hard goal, I left everything I had out on the road and it hurt. I feel like if it hadn’t been so hot I could have held on and finished in 3:23. This has been a huge motivator and now all I want to do is go get that PR. I am already researching fast fall marathons. After the race I realized how dehydrated I was my lunch was 2 slices of pizza with 2 glasses of water and 2 glasses of root beer (and a Gatorade, bottled water and frozen coffee between the race and lunch) 

Weird Stat 
Actually my 3 fastest marathons are separated by 58 seconds. 
3rd 3:27:53 – 2014 Colorado Marathon 
2nd 3:27:27 – 2012 Colfax Marathon 
1st 3:26:55 – 2012 Rock n Roll Denver 

A few pics 

Here is where I past my family around mile 22 
 

My favorite spectators 

Green Mountain on a rainy day

Here is what I love about trail running, you never know what you will find. Today on my trail run I came across an interesting sign...

 
 At the top of the mountain we could see everyone getting poured on at the cheery creek sneak. Mitch and I were nice and dry although it was painfully windy.

2014 Platte River Half Marathon

13.1 miles - 1:37:04

A friend of mine wasn’t going to run this race and I didn’t want to let his bib go to waste. Last weekend I ran 34 miles over the weekend so I wasn’t ready for a race but I thought it would be a perfect opportunity for a tempo run or a little bit harder than tempo run. I decided to run 1:38 only because it was any easy to figure out 7:30 pace on the course. A few of my friends also wanted to run sub 1:40 so the 4 of us set out together.

Miles 1-3 (Avg pace 7:31)
Our group stayed together as the race winded through town. I felt great and the pace just felt like a nice weekly long run. I was a little worried about getting boxed in because the first few miles were on a nice wide street and then the rest of the race was on bike paths. We couldn’t have asked for a better spring morning. 30’s at the start and around 50 at the finish line with clear skies.

Miles 4 - 6 (Avg pace 7:15)
My friend Matt is a new runner and very fast, faster than he knows. Matt started pulling away and I decided to go with him. That was the last time we saw Gary and Abby, they both ran great races. Matt pushed the pace we ran mile 4 in 7:11 and then mile 5 in 7:12. At this point I decided that I couldn’t continue at that pace and have a nice tempo run. I let Matt go and ran mile 6 in 7:23.

Miles 7 – 12 (Avg pace 7:26)
Those fast miles got me a little out of breath. I decided the the rest of the race I would settle in the 7:20’s. I ended up catching Matt somewhere between mile 8 and 9. I convince him to run with me and we did for a little while before he fell behind at a water station. I figured I would let him run his own race.

Mile 13 and the last 0.1 (Avg pace 7:23)
A lot of this race was on a slight decline and in the last few miles we had a few rollers. But mile 13 has a big hill over the highway on a viaduct (8th avenue). I kept an eye on my watch to make sure I didn’t slow down too much. My pace went above 7:30 but I got a little of it back on the downhill. We took a turn and could see the finish about 3 blocks away. My watch recoded my last 0.1 at 5:40 pace. I was pretty happy with my time. I did exactly what I wanted run strong and not kill myself. Next week is my peak training week for this marathon and its going to be tough. This is my second fastest half marathon now out of 5 total now. I love the half marathon, I don’t know why I don’t run more of them.

After the race I jogged back to the top of the hill and cheered on all my friends. I love this new group of friends I have made, it’s like a big family. We all met after the race and ate and talked, it was a lot of fun doing this race with so many friends.

This was around mile 5. I am in the Green having way to much fun, Matt is a few steps in front of me in race mode.


Post race picture with the Mile High Track Club. We had about 10 more that didn’t make it to the photo opp. It was a great day for our team with so many PR’s.