Rock and Roll New Orleans Half Marathon Recap

I arrived on Friday night. My uncle/godfather/parrain picked me up at the airport. The air was warm enough that evening for him to be wearing shorts. Since I'd been traveling all day, our first order of business was a shrimp po boy for me. I miss these sandwiches but it's probably a good thing I can't eat them whenever I want one. :-) 

On Saturday, my parrain and I went to the Expo in the convention center to pick up my race bib and wander for a bit among the vendors. (Parking was horrible. You'd think they've never done this before in New Orleans.) Being my 3rd Rock and Roll race, the event was quite familiar. We picked up some free swag and sampled some energy bars. It was crowded but not unbearably so. I sought out Running Skirts but decided not to buy anything even though their "special" prices were decent. There wasn't a place to try anything on and I couldn't remember the size of the skirt I have at home (which is too big.)

That evening, my aunt and uncle had another commitment so I had the house to myself to relax with my feet up and think about and prepare for the race. My cousin came over to visit with me. We are a year apart and don't get to see each other as often as we would like to. That was very nice to sit with her and catch up on our busy lives. Here she is on her Vespa!

For my pre-race dinner I cooked some spaghetti and tossed in some tuna, mixed vegetables (corn, carrots and green beans) and a bit of lemon and pepper. It was tasty and light. It turned out to be a perfect meal. My tummy was full and settled for the evening. When my parrain came home, we set our morning schedule and decided to leave the house about 5:30am. Why do these damn races start so early in the morning??

Of course, I could not get to sleep. I woke up every hour or so to make sure I wasn't late. That even happens when I'm at home so there isn't anything I can do about it I suppose. Finally, 4:45 rolled around and I decided to get up. I'd laid out my gear the night before so I wouldn't forget anything and to minimize my time getting ready. Gear for the event included: Skirt Sports Happy Hour skirt, Under Armour "Don't Be Last" short sleeved shirt, long sleeved tech shirt, my new bright yellow Pearl Izumi rain jacket. The plan was to wear the three layers in the morning while waiting for the race to start and then decide what to leave in my bag at bag check. I decided to keep the jacket and ditch the long sleeve tech shirt. I felt ok should I loose my bag at gear check parting with the shirt. Although, I did also leave my glasses in my bag since it was still dark when I was dropped off. Turns out the gear check was a very smooth operation.

I was at the starting area with more than enough time to spare, just like I like it. I was able to make two potty stops, find my corral, check my bag, walk around to warm up and stretch a bit, update Facebook, take some photos, soak up the moment, and get my game face on. Perfect. :-)

I have no idea what time my corral actually started the race. I'd forgotten my Garmin at home so had no clue of my pace or the time throughout the half. I didn't even think about it until I was walking to the start area after being dropped off. I heard the familiar beep of another person's Garmin which made me realize I didn't have mine. It seemed tragic at first but then I realized I wouldn't have anything to stress about or obsess about and that made me relax. There wasn't anyway I'd be able to get it anyway so no sense worrying over it. I put it out of my mind and just prepared to enjoy the run on my own terms.

I knew my parrain would be waiting at his sister's/my aunt's house about 2 miles up the course. I settled in with my corral buddies and found a nice comfortable pace pretty quickly. I kept reminding myself to slow down at some point but I felt so comfortable, I just kept moving. The course is completely flat and the warm moist air felt great as I breathed. It was so different from all the training runs I'd done. So much more comfortable. Isn't that the way it's supposed to be though? I moved over to the sidewalk side of St. Charles to look for my family as I approached my aunt's block. There they were!! Cheering, holding a sign, and so excited to be there with me!! Yay!! That was so much fun!! I was soo excited they were there! :-)

I decided not to take photos as I ran this time. I knew my chance to PR was good and I also knew it was going to be very very close if I wanted to make my 2:30 time goal. So, I just decided to run and enjoy the running rather than being a tourist. I know this won't be my last race in New Orleans. I wanted to really try to meet my time goal for this one. So, I don't have any photos of the course, or my family cheering me on, or of Loyola, Cabrini, St. Louis Cathedral, Cafe du Monde, or any other familiar places on the course. I did take my time to enjoy those sights, except maybe Cabrini since my high school was only a mile from the finish line. I also, for the first time, ran solely against myself. I usually find a person I try to pace with and beat at the end. This time, it was all me, running as hard as I could. That felt good too and I think made me relax more through the whole run.

Even though there are clocks at the various mileage check points, since I didn't know what time I started, it was hard for me to do the math to figure out where I was. Again, that was a good thing.

I felt really really good for the first 10 miles or so. I couldn't believe how great I felt. I had a feeling I was running pretty fast as well. My legs were good. My lungs were great. I had water bottles with me so I didn't have to get caught up in the crowds at the aid stations. I walked a couple of times when I took off my jacket and had to adjust it. That was after the turn around point on St. Charles. I ate part of a Clif Bar on that stretch as well. I kept thinking I needed to make a potty stop but the lines were so long I decided not to. I didn't have to go that bad and it may have just been nerves.

The weather was absolutely beautiful. Sunny, not too hot, and running on the avenues was nice and shady as the day went on. Not much wind there either.

About the 10 mile mark, my hip started to get painful. The roads in New Orleans aren't the smoothest and even though the ones we were on weren't so bad, every little imperfection was amplified by my right hip. Running over a patch of bricks, patched potholes, and worst of all, the crowned and slanted roads of the city. Those crowned and slanted roads are great for letting the rain water roll off. Not so good for running. I kept trying to find the sweet spot either close to the neutral ground or close to the right edge, but my hip wasn't happy at all after 10 miles of that. Eventually I did have to take a couple of walk breaks to help ease the uneven pounding. The good thing about that was, I realized I wasn't drinking enough. So, when I took those walk breaks, it gave me an excuse to drink again. That definitely helped me get to the finish. I also learned that carrying the small water bottles meant I could drink when I wanted. I filled my bottles at the aid stations rather than drinking from the cups when they were available. And, I could carry more water and cut the Gatorade as well. That was a great plan.

Making the turn onto Esplanade gave me and energy boost as it was the straight away to the finish line. I am very familiar with that avenue but had only ever driven it. I picked up my pace a bit once we made that turn to try to finish strong. But, that was when my hip wasn't happy so it didn't last for very long. Passing Tastee Donuts at Broad street brought me back to my high school days. That was my bus stop to get home from school. And of course, the smell of hot fresh donuts was in the air. That was the hardest part of the race I think! LOL! So close to the finish but those donuts smelled so good!

At Cabrini there was a group of people handing out big Mardi Gras beads so I grabbed one and wore it for the rest of the race. That gave me a boost again as it was just across the bayou from City Park. When I hit the entrance to city park, it dawned on me that I still had to run all the way to the stadium. I walked for a short while again when I heard a spectator, who had already run the race, shout out, less than a half mile to the finish! So, I picked it up again. I began to sprint at the museum and decided I wasn't going to stop until I crossed the finish line. I tried to settle into my faster pace but had to dodge lots of other slower people. The finish line chute was quite narrow so it was tough to make my way without stepping on anyone. Seeing the finish line I kicked it up a notch thinking I needed every second I could muster. When I saw the official clock, which started when the gun went off at 7am, it said 3 hours, 1 minute and some seconds. I knew I was going to be very very close to my goal time.

The finish line area was so narrow that as soon as you crossed it, you had to come to a complete stop. Ouch! My calves began to cramp immediately because I couldn't walk at all due to the crowd. I marched in place while I waited to get my finishers medal. That helped. It took forever to get out of the finish line area. I grabbed as much food and drink as I could carry and then grabbed a race blanket to carry it in. I didn't see my BFF from high school who was planning to meet me at the finish. So, I walked a bit to find a place to set all my stuff down. I knew better than to sit on the ground. I learned after the Denver half that once I sat down, getting up would be difficult. My parrain text me and I realized I really had run faster than anticipated because he missed seeing me again too.

I decided to make my way to bag check, which seemed very far away from everything. My sister sent me a text congratulating me on my run. She had signed up to get text alerts from Competitor to track my progress. She sent me my finish time:

02:32:15

Holy crap!! I couldn't believe I'd done it! No Garmin. No pace group. Just enjoying the run. Sweetness!!

Even though it was only 2 minutes off my goal time, I feel super excited and content with that time. I ran as hard as I could. I didn't make any unnecessary stops or take unnecessary breaks. I walked only a few times but they were all needed breaks. My hydration went well. I ate enough the night before. I had fans along the route. I felt good when I finished. It was a great race!

I can't help imagining what I'm capable of should I ever find the time to really train for one of these.

I did hook up with my BFF from high school and we walked a bit just so I could stretch my legs. I ate a bagel and drank a chocolate milk just before I found her. I felt pretty good. What else remained? Crawfish and a beer, that's what!

We sat on the lake, ate crawfish and chatted about stuff. It was exactly how I wanted to celebrate.

When she dropped me off at my parrain's house, he and I relived the day as well. Plans were made for a dinner family celebration that evening. We had Italian with my aunt and my cousin and talked for hours. It was a perfect ending to a perfect day!

02:32:15 is my new half marathon PR. Check out this medal I'm adding to my collection!

Thanks everyone for all the support and encouragement and for sharing in this fantastic trip home!!