High Rollin' in the AC---The Race of a Lifetime

After the San Francisco Marathon, I took a break from running because of a problem with my left foot. I worked on cross-training and focused on swimming, plyometrics, and other cardio in the gym. I eased back into running slowly and as I did, I noticed my running was actually faster than before.
I really wanted to run the US Air Force Marathon in September, but I knew I couldn't do it with my foot the way it was. I was bummed! Eventually I decided I could probably handle a half-marathon and started looking for a race to train for. About 5 weeks out I found the Atlantic City Half and began training. I ran 4 days a week with moderate mileage and kept the plyo workout in my routine.
Paul and I had never been to AC and I was excited. The race was Sunday (15 Nov) so we headed down on Saturday. We took our time and stopped at several places on our way: Ikea, REI, shopping galore!
We arrived and checked into our hotel--yes, we stayed in a hotel this time, not the car! Amazing, I know! : ) It was just getting dark and the bright lights of AC were shining just as they do in their sister town of Vegas.
We hit the street and decided we'd walk down to the boardwalk to see where the start of the race would be. The boardwalk was great! Most of the major casinos are situated right on the boardwalk and you can walk up and down from one to the other. Not to mention all the shops, eateries, etc. It's such a fun little beach town! We stopped into a candy store and bought some salt-water taffy, yum! We enjoyed our walk but started to get hungry. I'm sort of picky when it comes to pre-race meals, so we were choosy about where to go. We walked through Donald Trump's Taj Mahal casino, through Bally's (where we lost $5 in a slot machine, boo), and a few other places before we decided we'd head back and eat at the brew pub at our own hotel--the Sheraton. As it turned out, they may have had only 2 veggie friendly items on the menu and it was not what I wanted for a pre-race dinner. The server was kind enough to ask the cook to make me a grilled cheese with fries and it worked out fine. That with some of Paul's pumpkin ale made me fairly happy!
We had walked a ton and we both were fairly tired and I had a big day ahead of me. We pulled the sheets back on the bed and I noticed something on the flat sheet---something that looked like dried on bloody something or other! Ewwwwwww! Are you kidding? That was gross! Thank goodness the room had 2 double beds! Blech! We slept in the other one, obviously. I'm sure the sheets were clean, but whatever it was was just plain disgusting. Sorry to share that, but it's part of the story!
Up the next morning and I was not all that motivated to run! I usually put a lot of pressure on myself to set a PR (personal record), but the night before I told myself just run it and don't worry so much. I actually felt relieved when I started the race. I knew where I had to be pace wise if I wanted to PR and I never let that get out of my sight of course, but I didn't let that drive me either.
I started my first mile out just as I felt. It was faster than I'd planned. I continued on and ramped up a little bit. As I went, I felt good. I felt inspiration from the ocean as I looked over at it while I ran on the boardwalk. I cruised. I didn't get a side cramp. I felt good! I actually felt great. That, for me, is unusual during a race.
I got to see Paul several times during the race. Once just after the start, once about mile 5, and then again just before the finish. It's great to have the support!
I was able to push hard the last 1.1 miles for a strong finish and a new PR of 1:54 (8:42 pace). That may not be super fast to many of you, but it's fast to me. : )
We headed back to the hotel so I could shower and we hit the road for home. Stopped to have a nice lunch at Panera and popped into another REI store (couldn't find what we wanted the day before). It was a nice little mini vacation and I ran the best race of my life. I hope I can repeat for the next one. : ) We'll see!
Oh and unfortunately our camera decided to act up. You'll notice a black line in some of the photos... : ( Boo!


Atlantic City & Half-Marathon