Race day started with a super early 4:50AM wake-up call. I took my time getting ready, ate my standard PB sandwich, and we were on our way. Thankfully Matt dropped me off right at the start so I didn’t have to worry about parking.
Rocky was all decked out.
On the way to the race I told Matt that I wished I was running the full marathon for fun instead (I had originally signed up for the full but then dropped to the half). Then I saw this and quickly changed my mind (at the halfway point the marathoners branch off and head out to Manayunk along Kelly Drive. When I ran the full in 2008 I remember hearing the crowd cheer for the HMers and I was so jealous that they were already done.)
I hate writing long, wordy recaps, especially for a HM, so I’ll keep it (sorta) short and bullet point my thoughts.
M1 – 7:54
M2 – 7:50
M3 – 7:51
M4 – 7:46
M5 – 7:56
M6 – 7:59
- I was feeling really good and was running exactly how I wanted to.
- Each year I forget how much I LOVE this race. The crowd support and course are just amazing!!!!
- I saw some funny signs comparing the length of the marathon to Kim Kardashian’s marriage (with the marathon obviously being the longer of the two).
- My favorite sign, because I’m such a sap about Boston, was: Go Sue! Give us a good excuse to plan a girls’ trip to Boston! Awwww….
- I’m a HUGE fan of having your name on your bib. People kept yelling “Go Kristy” all the way down Chestnut Street. Amazing.
- At one point I hear “Kristttttyyyyy” and turn around to see the lovely Alli cheering for me. Thank you Alli, that meant so much!
M7 – 7:48
M8 – 8:26
M9 – 8:21
M10 – 8:45
- I have no idea why Mile 7 was so fast. It’s a nice hill (not steep but a gradual climb) and then you run down a hill right near the Drexel frat houses (where I may or may not have spent time freshman and sophomore year of college).
- I started to unravel a bit from Mile 8 to 10. This killed me timewise. Right after Mile 9 there is a long, winding hill. I hate that hill. I curse it every year.
M11 – 8:04
M12 – 8:06
M13 – 8:11
- After Mile 10 I got a surge of energy and picked up the pace. A nice downhill also helped.
Official results:
Like I said Sunday, I’m disappointed with how much speed I lost post-marathon but I needed to recover and take a break. And, as my friend Amanda wisely pointed out, a PR is a PR!!!!
I got to “meet” Celia post-race (I technically met her during Mile 7 but we didn’t chat much)! We stood right near the marathon finish line and watched all the sub-3:00 runners finish. Then we got yelled at to move back.
It was a great weekend! The next race I have is Boston (OK, right now that’s the only race I am technically signed up for). As soon as I figure out my training plan, I’m going to fill it in with some tune-up races 🙂
aw i’m jealous i want to meet you guys! 🙂 congrats again and i’m so excited to follow your road to boston!
My 7th was amazingly fast too…9:00 when my avg pace was 9:40. Nice recap, I wrote much of mine last night but need to make it less wordy. That would be tough to be running the 26.2 and see “the easy” way out. At least it splits a a few tenths of a mile from the finish. I like that Rocky wears a race tee! If I woke up earlier I might have been able to see it 🙂 Congrats on the PR!
I missed Rocky in the shirt!
Sounds like you had a great morning. Let me know if you ever want to connect for a run in Wissahickon!
Will do! That would be great 🙂
so glad I spotted you! Excited for Boston 🙂
congrats on the PR!
Great race and congrats on the PR!
EEEEP! Boston is coming up QUICK!
Dude, you are so speedy. You should totally be my coach. Wait…..
BTW, that’s Elizabeth up there – it apparently logged me in on an old blog of mine. I’m super handy with the technical aspects of computers. Or something. Sigh.
PS – legs no longer trying to kill me but when I sneeze, I think my abs scream obscenities at me.
It was so great to meet you. 🙂 I would have been super mopey after the race if it hadn’t been for you. Instead I saved it for brunch and the bus ride home after having 3 glasses of wine…
Congrats on the PR! The first half of our splits look the same-ish 😛 Mile 7 of mine was fast too! Then it went downhill! I wonder if I had tried to stay with you if we could have pushed each other but i was checking out of things quickly. You planning on doing any halfs before Boston?? I am looking for one early March-ish.
I want to do a half and I’m mulling over the Ocean Drive 10-miler in NJ (my sister is running the full and I plan on cheering her on anyway, so why not run the 10-miler?!?!). I haven’t done any real digging yet but want to stay local. There’s a HM in Delaware in mid-March – I’ve done it 3 times – but it’s hilly 🙁 Let me know if you find anything.
hills kill me too but you picked it back up in the end. very impressive. can’t wait for you to head our way up in boston 🙂
I can’t wait to read about your Boston training!
Also, I one day hope to run a half as fast your slow half. 🙂
You did GREAT! I totally know how it feels to lose speed after a marathon, but you know the marathon was totally worth it 😉 after a bit of training you will be back up there smoking the races again! AND it was a PR!!! So no feeling bad about that 🙂
Looking forward to following your BOSTON training!!
That is such a great time, and, absolutely, a PR is a PR! I want us to run a race together someday….
Great race!!! and yes, I agree w/ your friend. A PR is certainly a PR. ;o)
Congrats! I know it wasn’t the 1:45 you wanted, but still awesome! I mean, I can barely run right now, I couldn’t imagine racing a half in like Jan or Feb after running NYC!
I’ve always heard great things about the Philly marathon/half — I need to run it sometime!
There is seriously a statue of Rocky? Kind of cool!
Great job, Kristy! I know you’re disappointed, but those splits look pretty darn impressive to me! Congrats!
Wow, you are so speedy! Reading the signs and hearing all the cheering is really what gets me through races!
Congratulations on the PR!! I know it’s frustrating to lose speed after a marathon but don’t be too hard on yourself. Like you said, a PR is a PR…and you have plenty of time to build back up before Boston (I’m already getting really excited to start training again. We’ll see how I feel a couple months from now haha). One of these days I want to run Philly. I’ve heard a lot of great things about that race. Congrats!