A DAY LATE

If you’ve been following along, you probably realize that I run a race, write a report and then end up writing 2-3 more posts about the race throughout the week. I’m sure this race will be the same.

So when someone basically writes that they don't see any way that they won’t run 2:55 and then they go out and run 2:57, they must be pissed. Right?

Wrong.

After reflecting on this race some more, I’m happier with my performance than if I had run 2:55 on an ideal day. I definitely learned more about myself on Saturday than I did when I ran my PR when it was 40 degrees out.

Of course, now the problem becomes I don’t have an excuse for not running well in the heat.

The more I read about the race the more I try to figure out how the hell I ran so well. I’m sure fitness played a huge role. The pack through 17 helped a ton too. Another thing was I was pouring 2-3 cups of water over my head at every water stop. I can’t remember the last time I did that in a race. And once I got past 20 miles, I started seeing familiar faces out cheering; Pat, Heather, Evan, Tracy, Derek, Kevin, Jim, Ed, my family, etc. Even the people I didn’t see, I knew they were out there.

Anyone else notice the weather in Duluth on Sunday? At 9 AM (what would’ve been 90 minutes into the race it was 55 degrees, cloudy, with a strong wind out of the North (i.e. tailwind). A day late!

Bonus: while it’s always nice to meet new people at an event, I was able to meet 2 people whose names I knew only through the results, Mike and Tom. I also met a guy whose face I knew, but not his name, Steve.

Overall it was a great weekend. On to TCM! No running this week, until maybe Saturday. I’m using the time to focus on doing some more interviews. I got a lot of positive feedback over the weekend (and realized that there are about a zillion other great Minnesota runners out there), so I want to keep the momentum going.

Quote of the day;

“I'm scared for those guys.” - Chad Johnson, commenting on the heat the marathoners would be facing, after winning the half marathon