BAA Half Marathon

Haha, just kidding that's not me, but the first female to finish

 I made it! Today was a really fun day and I felt MUCH better than last year. 

Let me start from the begining. I woke up today at 6:15 very tired and VERY sick! I did not have a good night sleep last night; I was up multiple times coughing and blowing my nose. Needless to say I was a bit nervous about running a 13 + mile race today. However, I ate my usual breakfast (with an addition of almond butter instead of peanut butter): Coffee, Toast with Almond Butter, and banana.

By 7 AM my cousin had arrived and my cousin (Anthony), Evan and I headed on the "T" to Forest Hills to catch the shuttle over to Franklin Park. Last year the race started at the "Fens," so it was an easy commute from my house; this year the route was changed and it started/finished at Franklin Park. The weather at 7 was FREEZING, but I could feel the sun starting to peak through. The transportation took a little longer than we anticipated so we didn't arrive at Franklin Park till 8 and the race started at 8:30. And on top of it all the bathroom line was at least 50 people deep. Why in a race that has over 5,000 participants would there be only 8 porta-potties? Well, we tried to use our time effectively and take pictures:

Anthony and I pre-race

We also tried to do a little stretching. At 8:30 we were next in line and we could see everyone all lined up at the start line. People behind us in line started to go a little crazy and started using the space behind the porta potties as a bathroom. Anthony and I sprinted to the start line just as the gun went off. Fortunately there were SO many people that we didn't actually start running for another few minutes. Here are my splits according to my GARMIN. 

Distance: 1:47:11

Duration: 13.31

Mile 1: 8:00

Mile 2: 8:16

Mile 3: 7:47

Mile 4: 7:27

Mile 5: 8:03

Mile 6: 7:20

Mile 7: 8:00

Mile 8: 7:54

Mile 9: 8:02

Mile 10: 8:24

MIle 11: 8:15

Mile 12: 8:27

Mile 13: 8:37

Mile .31: 2:28

My overall time was exactly 4 minutes slower than last year. However, I felt MUCH, MUCH better during this race and am actually very happy with my time. I felt that my splits were much more consistent and at the end of the race I did not "die" like last year. In addition the course had changed from last year and the last 7-8 miles were all UP hill. At one point I remember thinking: "really, another hill?"This was a really tough course and the last 3 miles were VERY challenging for me. Also, I thought the finish line was about .2 miles closer than it was (the race ended with a quarter lap around the track) and actually stopped prematurely and turned off my Garmin, but then realized I still had another little bit to go. Oops!!!

Most importantly my knees felt really good during the race and my sickness (although I had a VERY runny nose and it was kinda hard to breath) did not affect my run too much. I also thought the strategy of starting out slow and steady worked well for me because I still felt like I had energy at the end of the race. During the race I only drank water, even though they offered Gatorade and gels. I felt sick last time I tired both those two items and did not want to chance it today. However, if I train for the marathon I will have to figure out another option because over 2 hours without any calories could be dangerous. Maybe I will fool around with a homemade sports drink. Any suggestions? Overall, I am very happy about the race and my time! I can't wait for next year's race. I am already anxious to sign up for my next race, anyone have any suggestions of fun races around Boston?

Me

Anthony

Anthony did a GREAT job too and finish only about 5 minutes after me. GREAT JOB ANTHONY!!!!

Also a special thanks to all our spectators who came out to support us during our race.

Evan and I

My parents and I

After the race I re-fueled with a packet of granola that was handed out, but I did not want to eat too much because I knew we were going to a special lunch.

Once home, I showered and iced. Anthony, Evan and I met a bunch of family members at PICCO to celebrate the race and Anthony's birthday (his birthday was yesterday).

I started with a White Rascal (They were all out of Pumpkin beer again!!),

split a spinach salad with Evan,

and split a large pizza with 1/2 short ribs and gorgozola and 1/2 sausage, brocolli rabe and olives (both sides were specials, they unfortunately were all out of the pumpkin pizza).

OMG!!! This pizza was incredible. The short ribs side was one of the best toppings I have ever had. If you have not been to PICCO and live around Boston I highly, highly recommend it!! I had three pieces total and was completely stuffed, but not too stuffed for dessert: Birthday cake (Apple Crisp) and pumpkin ice cream (I had to get my pumpkin in finally!!).

Happy Birthday Anthony

Pumpkin Ice Cream

I had a wonderful day with a great race (the weather actually improved greatly and was actually kinda hot at the end) and time with family!!