I registered on Monday. I've had this one on my tentative calendar for a while now. I actually waited until Monday to register because of a special promotion they have going on right now. Because it's football season, R&R New Orleans has been offering discounts based on when the Saints win. The day following a win, the registration fee is discounted by the number of points they win by. I had the Oct. 23rd game highlighted because we played the Indianapolis Colts. I was rewarded greatly for my patience as the final score was Saints 62 and Colts 7!! Yes!! That's $55 off the registration fee!
This will be my first race where I've given myself a time goal. My goal is 2:30. I have completed 3 half marathons so far. In order of completion my times were 2:49:03 (Vegas), 2:45:22 (Estes Park), and 2:51:09 (Denver). 2:30 would be a huge improvement. I'm justifying it this way:
1.) Training - has been haphazard so far. A more focused effort will produce a better result.
2.) Altitude - training at altitude will give me an edge in New Orleans.
3.) Cheering section - my family and friends can be strategically placed along the route to cheer me on.
4.) Familiarity - I will know the route, part of it passes in front of my aunt's home (well, it did last time.)
5.) Reward - I can't wait to celebrate with food and drink when it's over!
I trained about the same for the first two. I was pleased with Estes because it was the most challenging so far. I did suffer a little in the last mile with a headache. I'm going to say it was altitude but, it may have been dehydration. I ran with my camelbak and ran out of water shortly after finishing. I also drank gatorade at the aid stations. I also took a long potty break. So, my time could have been even faster, closer to 2:40, if it weren't for that break and walking the last mile. So, I don't think 2:30 is that far out of reach.
The last half, just a few weeks ago, was amazing for what I didn't do. I didn't train very well at all. I really thought it would suck, and even though it is my slowest to date, I am quite proud of it as well. It taught me a lot. I learned that I do have a decent running base. I learned that I can be consistent. I learned that I can push myself harder. I learned that finishing is really fun. I learned that I should train more and train better.
I purchased the Jeff Galloway book "Half-Marathon - You Can Do It". I checked it out from the library as I prepared for the Las Vegas race. I checked it out again right after the Denver race. I decided to buy it so that I can use it to prepare a training plan. There is a 2:30-3:00 training plan and also a 1:59-2:29 training plan. I'm going to evaluate both and also incorporate the Runner's World SmartCoach app in order to come up with my own plan. I could ask a few people for some training advice but I kinda wanna do this one on my own. I just want to see what I can accomplish on my own.
My strategy is Tuesdays on the treadmill, Thursdays on the trail or at the "track", Sundays for my long run. Some of my known obstacles are:
1.) Cold/Snow/Ice - I'll need to train through the Colorado winter.
2. Speed work - My "track" will be a nearby park that has a paved path that's about a third of a mile. I'll do my speed work there.
3.) Stress - I have really been having a hard time managing stress. That was really what stalled my training for the Denver race. I'm working on that. I'm also looking into a yoga class.
19 weeks. I'm working on building my base up to 6-7 miles for my easy long run before I start my focused 16 week training plan. Week 16 is the week of Thanksgiving. I'm also looking for some races of appropriate distances to keep me on track. The Winter Distance Series is on my calendar. (Dec. 17 - 10K, Jan. 21 - 10mi, Feb. 18 - 10mi) Unfortunately, it's in Littleton which could be problematic if the weather is bad.
19 weeks to go.
:-)
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