Monson Memorial Classic - Sun. November 11

So this is my sixth half-marathon, and the conditions could not have been better -- only my preparation was lacking. Cold wind but warm strong sun, dry ground and a nice mob of people (215 in the half, as well as a good bunch for the 5K). I got there in very good time and claimed my registration pack, then wandered round a bit. Ivan also there (I met the fabulous Meter for the first time too --lovely eyes, not what I expected in a greyhound), and he too was underprepared. So we agreed we'd take it easy, but paces differed -- he was going for eight and a halfs, while I figured to do eights or a bit faster (7.5 mph or better, I told myself). We did a gentle mile to warm up, and then it was about time to go.

[There was no time to "go" though -- two portapotties and one indoor loo for 400-odd people, just inadequate. This caused a bti of discomfort by the end of the race for me, but nothing too bad; still, I wish they'd do the math a bit better. . .]

The start was abrupt--I didn't hear the call, but suddenly everyone was running. Went off slowly, very deliberately ignoring the flow and just watching my digivice. Held it steady for the first mile, telling myself I was just warming up. By mile three there was room to move, and though I kept pace to sevens for the first 6 miles, I wasn't losing any spots - -I guess most people were being very consistent in their paces. From the mid point I was in sixes (though the uphill course was a challenge, even at a slow pace) and I managed to keep moving up, taking place after place, right to the last mile. It was too cold to take my fleece off throughout, though at 1/4 mile to go I removed it to show the number tag (#23 for me this year -- I must have registered way early!). Dropped a glove, and stopped to pick it up; also, unawares, lost my hat in the process, but a cyclonaut from the group of three that had shadowed runners throughout picked it up and handed it to me. Very kind. Mile 13 was well slow, for some reason, though the finish was faster. Didn't lose a single place in the whole race - that's got to be a first for me. Here's the official result:

Time: 1:32:50
Distance: 13.1 miles
Speed: 8.46 mph

Comment: coming off two weeks of no running, except for a slow 4 miler the day before, this run convinces me that experience makes a real difference. I still don't know enough to predict accurately -- I erred on the side of caution and wondered if I'd even finish. But since there was no numb-leg problem, it was just body memory and feedback. Starting slowly I figured by mile three I could keep a bit faster pace, as long as I wasn't racing. That makes me feel it's time to sign up for a marathon. . . Meanwhile given Ivan's 9-10 mile crash, I'm wondering about causes and cures for that, and if I'll face that when I try for the longer distance. We'll see (and hopefully he'll figure out a way round it in time for next year's Monson, if not before).