Shore Promenade, Brooklyn
11 October 2014
2:19:37
This weekend I ran a benefit race for a fellow runner, blogger, and member of the Prospect Park Track Club, a man who has worked tirelessly for years to make our local running community the awesome community that it is.
Run for the Rings took place at Shore Road Promenade, organized by the excellent folks at NYCRUNS. The Shore Road course is completely flat; basically two out-and-backs of different lengths.
I tend to go out too fast in races, and I intended this half to be part of a longer training run*, so I wanted to be smart about pace. Luckily, there was a runner near me that seemed to be moving at a very steady and doable pace. I fell in behind her and stayed there until about mile 7. At that point I felt like stretching my legs a little bit, and I was getting close to my usual sweet spot, so I pulled ahead. She then stayed behind me for the rest of the race. (We introduced ourselves and chatted a bit afterward. Turns out we both had a really good race.)
In fact, this was probably my best half marathon experience and I came within seconds of a new PR. (Seconds! Bah!) After my bonk at the Brooklyn Half, I re-evaluated my food/fluid intake. Because I know that Justin’s Nut Butter and Tailwind work for me on long runs, I had some of both prior to the race. I also know that Honey Stinger Chews are a good form of carbs for me during runs, so I took a package of those with me. The course took us past aid stations five times; I ate two chews just prior to arriving at each aid station and I took one cup of water each time. Perfect. No stomach growling or upset, no bonk.
Temperatures remained at the 55-degree mark throughout, with the race beginning in steady rain and ending in slightly less steady rain. I struggled over what to wear. I have just one rain-resistant jacket and while it has worked well during winter races, I was afraid it would be too hot for this one. I decided to chance it and just wear a short-sleeved shirt underneath. It worked fine, although the jacket surrendered around mile 8 and I quickly became soaked underneath. I haven’t had the best luck with my feet over the past year and it did worry me a bit to know they were going to be wet for a few hours. I opted to use Vaseline this time on my toes and that worked like a million bucks.
All together, I give this race two thumbs up!
* I ran to the race from my apartment and back afterward for a total of 16 miles.