O2O is done

Well, all I can say is that I showed up and I was able to go from the start of the race and made it all the way to the finish line. OK, there is a little more to it than that. After a couple of months of training for this the race finally was here. 6 am is way too early to start a race, but it's the same time the Disneyland half marathon will start in September. So this was good for me to figure out how early to get up for that one. With the start of the race near the Ventura Pier I was given a tip to park over across the freeway near Walden Surfboards, then just go on the overpass to the start line. Great tip and thanks Brandy. Walden Surfboards donated some old boards to be used as mile markers for this race, and the full marathon associated with it. Great way to reuse surfboards that could have gone to a landfill. Way to help out with the green theme of the event and its coordinator/producer Compete Green.

Because of some light rain late Saturday night, early Sunday morning the PA system to be used at the start wasn't working. Something about water and electricity not working well together. Some confusion reigned in the beginning but most of the racers understood the difficulty in setting up a race, and this being the first one, problems were bound to happen. Lack of a starting mat was very apparent to the racers but with a relatively small pack - less than 300, it seemed that people positioned themselves well enough according to their abilities. I figured that I would be about in the middle so I started in the middle. The bike/walkway was crowded but everybody behaved well enough and no one fell, at least I didn't see anyone fall.

By the time I got by the pier, less than a half mile into the race, the crowd was spreading out well enough. A mile into the race I saw a coworker sitting in his van as he was taking some time off before heading back out to the surf. He told me later that he loved having the racers ther as the parking lot was full, and it kept a lot of other surfers away from some choice waves that day. Because of construction still taking place near the river mouth the course was re-done at a fairly late time and I thought the turnaround was placed a little too early. My GPS verified this thought later.

I began to pick off some people and fear crossed my mind - was I going out too fast? I got to the mile 2 marker and my watch said that I just did the second mile in 6:35!! It didn't feel like I was going that fast but I slowed down abit. Then I figured out that the turnaround was too early, maybe two minutes early at my pace. By mile 4 more runners were picked off and this time I felt that most of them had gone out way too fast. I thought my pace was okay but my legs were feeling a little tired already. What was up with that? OK, what should I do?

I brought along some gummi bears as my fuel food for the race. Simple candy, lots of sugar for energy and it doesn't bug my stomach. What I didn't account for was how hard it is to chew and swallow those things while running. I chewed on some for almost a half mile when I came upon some bathrooms at mile 6. I decided to stop and use the facility and give myself time to chew the bears. Had a little extra burst of energy but that was due to stopping for about 45 seconds. Another two miles into it I stopped near mile 8 to fill up my water bottle and chug down some gatorade. I wasn't panicking but my legs were tired and I was really beginning to labor. Found some people that I had been passing and having them pass me during my stops, and I tried to follow them as best as I can.

There was a man who, from the start, was breathing hard and I thought couldn't make it to the end. I kept passing him with ease but he just kept a constant pace and would catch up with me during my stops. At mile 10 I started to walk a bit, about 30 seconds before running for a few minutes. He would catch me when I would walk and I would pass him when I ran. At mile 11 the group of people that were just slightly ahead of me started to pull away. By mile 11.5 the heavy breather passed me and I was never able to pass him again. I was spent. I had to figure out how I could finish this race. I couldn't run more than a half mile bfore my legs would just about give out. Walking fast helped me keep going. It was a struggle but I kept at it. Somehow the gap in front of me matched the gap behind me. It seemed as if I wasn't going to pass anyone else, no one else was gonna pass me unless I stopped. So forward I kept going.

I knew that there weren't many photographers in the course so I could get away with not having a picture of me walking. I know, vanity rules. Just about a quarter mile from the pier the photographer sat and waited and I made sure that I would take a little walk break just before that so he can catch me as I was running and then keep on running to the finish line. It was a struggle. I wasn't able to muster any energy for any kind of kick at the finish. It took all I had to cross the line and have a smile. I knew that I was going to do it in under two hours, a PR, and that was all I needed to know.

I did take some pictures during the race, none came out really well. The ones I took after the race came out pretty good so here are a few of them. I was able to finish a couple of minutes ahead of Brandy to catch her as she crossed the finish line. Luckily I was able to catch my breath, get something to munch and drink and compose myself in time for her moment in glory. She was able to complete the race within her goal time and set a new PR herself.

We stuck around long enough to cheer on other runners we knew. Most of them were in the half marathon but there were a couple that ran the full marathon. Here is Paul as he crossed the line. The half marathon is quite a distance and it makes the full fairly daunting. Not sure if and when I will be able to attempt it.

Here's me and Brandy with Tom, the coach of the Inside Track Running Club and co-owner of Compete Green. This is the first marathon/half marathon race that Compete Green set out to do and I think it went as well to be expected. There were some problems. The half marathon course was about a hlaf mile too short but it was due to the problems caused by the construction at the end of the promenade. I am sure next year's race will be better. Definitely planning on running it again next year.

Ahhh, the knowledge that I had finished a race. No, a half marathon. With my medal around my neck and completing the race in under two hours, regardless of the fact that it was a half mile short, was just a good feeling. Runner's high, so natural, so good.