For a race in mid-August, the weather probably could not have been better for the 2006 Chicago Distance Classic (CDC). With a 6:30 am start time, the temperature hovered around 65 degrees as 8000 runners lined up in downtown Chicago for the 30th running of this half marathon.
The CDC is staged by the same folks who put on the Chicago Marathon and the Shamrock Shuffle, so they know a thing or two about large downtown races. Race setup was simply excellent. Lines (gear check, porta-potties) were short, and spirits were high. The course was setup to start and finish at (approximately) the same locations as the Chicago Marathon, so it was a informative preview for those of us planning to go the full 26.2 in October.
Last Chance
For me, this race was a bit of a last minute decision. I wanted to qualify for a preferred starting corral at the Chicago Marathon, but I missed the needed time by less than a minute at the Indy Mini in May. Of course, I didn’t realize how close I’d come until after the Mini. And having a somewhat “type-A” personality, I have to admit that was nagging in the back of my mind that I came so close to an very achievable goal. Having a preferred starting corral would mean an easier start and less congestion for the Chicago Marathon — and when you’re running your first-ever marathon, every little bit of advantage can be helpful. So the more I thought about it, the more I lamented having missed the qualifying time in Indy.
In the last week of July, the CDC sent around an email to runners registered for the Chicago Marathon with a reminder: the CDC is the last race on the calendar to qualify for a preferred start at Chicago. So it was now or never — and I knew I’d regret it if I didn’t run this race. So despite the fact that I did a 20 mile training run the prior weekend, and conceding that I would not do a full taper (i.e., I would not rest up the week before the race), I resolved to try for the corral qualifying time.
Obviously, the goal was the finishing time needed for a preferred start: 1:45:59 or better. I decided to give myself a little bit of cushion, so my race strategy was fairly simple: find the 1:45 pace group, and then keep them behind me.
Pace Group Drama
Sounds simple, but of course things aren’t always that easy. One of the two 1:45 pacers apparently decided to bank some time, and started out at a brisk 7:45-7:50/m pace instead of the 8:00/m pace that would have corresponded to a 1:45 race. That might not sound like much of a problem, but trust me when I say that going out too fast in a race is one of the biggest and most costly of all rookie racing mistakes. Usually any time you “save” by going out fast early (when you feel strong) will cost you more than double by the end of the race (when fatigue takes hold).
Now, I’m not an experienced racer — I have a hard time telling whether I’m going too fast or too slow. So as I saw the speedy pacer putting distance on me, I couldn’t help but worry that I was running too slowly. My fear was compounded by the fact that I do have a history of running early race miles slower than my target pace. Racing is tricky like that: start too fast, and you can blow your race — start too slow, and you’ll never get on track for your goal time.
In mile 3, I decided to push forward a bit and join the small pack of runners surrounding (and chatting with) with the speedy pacer. It turns out she was in fact going faster than intended. She apparently wasn’t too worried initially, but after a couple more (relatively) speedy miles, she finally announced that she was going to pull back the pace after the mile 5 marker. Ironically, I was still feeling very strong and very comfortable, despite having started faster than required for my time goal. So I decided that this was the point to put the pace group behind behind me, and true to plan, I never saw them again.
The next incident of mini-drama arose when I somehow missed the mile marker for mile 7, leading to a few minutes of irrational panic because I thought that somehow I had suddenly dropped to a snail’s pace. Clear thinking genius that I am, I deduced my mistake about half-way to the next mile marker, and got myself calmed down and re-focused on the goal. I am clearly a noob at this running stuff. (N.B. In the years since writing this report, I have missed mile markers in many races. It happens all the time, to racers of all experience levels. In addition, sometimes the mile markers are missing entirely, and sometimes their placement is wrong. Therefore its important for runners to learn to develop and trust their pacing skills, and not to rely entirely on course markings or Garmin readings.)
Side Stiches Suck
The only truly negative part of the race was the side stitch that I developed in mile 10 that refused to go away. I don’t normally get side stiches, so it was quite annoying (as well as quite painful). I’ll probably blame the gel I took after mile 9, but who really knows with these things. Bottom line is, you suck it up and keep running. I lost a small amount of time as the pain distracted me during a point when I really needed to concentrate in order to maintain pace. (N.B. Again, another good lesson for new runners. Obstacles happen in races: side stitches, stomach pain, chafing, blisters, and so forth. Learning how to overcome these hurdles is one of the challenges of becoming a better racer. Not one of the more fun challenges, I concede.) Somewhere in mile 12 the pain subsided, and I was able to finish with a strong last mile and a good kick to the finish. I think I did the best I could do on that given day, and you can’t help but be happy about that.
Mission Accomplished
So did I meet my time goal? Yes, I’m pleased to say, and with a little room to spare. Finishing time was 1:42:36, a few minutes under the threshold for the preferred corral — and a new PR for the half-marathon by just over 4 minutes.
And my reward for this feat? One day off, and then back to the marathon training with a vengeance. My first marathon coming up, and the date just keeps getting closer and closer.
Splits and Stats
Here’s my splits and HR (heart rate) detail, as well as my finishing stats:
Mile
Split
HR
1
7:52
164
2
7:45
170
3
7:52
170
4
7:55
169
5
7:52
169
6
7:52
169
7-8
15:56
165
(missed mile 7 marker)
9
7:42
165
10
7:46
165
11
7:50
165
(side stitch)
12
7:53
166
(side stitch)
13
7:33
169
0.1
0:44
177
Time: 1:42:36 (PR)
Pace: 7:50/m
Overall Place: 993 out of 7214 (top 14%)
Division Place: 150 out of 625 (M 35-39) (top 24%)
Gender Place: 796 out of 3486 (M) (top 23%)
Chicago Distance Classic – August 13, 2006
Chicago in August
For a race in mid-August, the weather probably could not have been better for the 2006 Chicago Distance Classic (CDC). With a 6:30 am start time, the temperature hovered around 65 degrees as 8000 runners lined up in downtown Chicago for the 30th running of this half marathon.
The CDC is staged by the same folks who put on the Chicago Marathon and the Shamrock Shuffle, so they know a thing or two about large downtown races. Race setup was simply excellent. Lines (gear check, porta-potties) were short, and spirits were high. The course was setup to start and finish at (approximately) the same locations as the Chicago Marathon, so it was a informative preview for those of us planning to go the full 26.2 in October.
Last Chance
For me, this race was a bit of a last minute decision. I wanted to qualify for a preferred starting corral at the Chicago Marathon, but I missed the needed time by less than a minute at the Indy Mini in May. Of course, I didn’t realize how close I’d come until after the Mini. And having a somewhat “type-A” personality, I have to admit that was nagging in the back of my mind that I came so close to an very achievable goal. Having a preferred starting corral would mean an easier start and less congestion for the Chicago Marathon — and when you’re running your first-ever marathon, every little bit of advantage can be helpful. So the more I thought about it, the more I lamented having missed the qualifying time in Indy.
In the last week of July, the CDC sent around an email to runners registered for the Chicago Marathon with a reminder: the CDC is the last race on the calendar to qualify for a preferred start at Chicago. So it was now or never — and I knew I’d regret it if I didn’t run this race. So despite the fact that I did a 20 mile training run the prior weekend, and conceding that I would not do a full taper (i.e., I would not rest up the week before the race), I resolved to try for the corral qualifying time.
Obviously, the goal was the finishing time needed for a preferred start: 1:45:59 or better. I decided to give myself a little bit of cushion, so my race strategy was fairly simple: find the 1:45 pace group, and then keep them behind me.
Pace Group Drama
Sounds simple, but of course things aren’t always that easy. One of the two 1:45 pacers apparently decided to bank some time, and started out at a brisk 7:45-7:50/m pace instead of the 8:00/m pace that would have corresponded to a 1:45 race. That might not sound like much of a problem, but trust me when I say that going out too fast in a race is one of the biggest and most costly of all rookie racing mistakes. Usually any time you “save” by going out fast early (when you feel strong) will cost you more than double by the end of the race (when fatigue takes hold).
Now, I’m not an experienced racer — I have a hard time telling whether I’m going too fast or too slow. So as I saw the speedy pacer putting distance on me, I couldn’t help but worry that I was running too slowly. My fear was compounded by the fact that I do have a history of running early race miles slower than my target pace. Racing is tricky like that: start too fast, and you can blow your race — start too slow, and you’ll never get on track for your goal time.
In mile 3, I decided to push forward a bit and join the small pack of runners surrounding (and chatting with) with the speedy pacer. It turns out she was in fact going faster than intended. She apparently wasn’t too worried initially, but after a couple more (relatively) speedy miles, she finally announced that she was going to pull back the pace after the mile 5 marker. Ironically, I was still feeling very strong and very comfortable, despite having started faster than required for my time goal. So I decided that this was the point to put the pace group behind behind me, and true to plan, I never saw them again.
The next incident of mini-drama arose when I somehow missed the mile marker for mile 7, leading to a few minutes of irrational panic because I thought that somehow I had suddenly dropped to a snail’s pace. Clear thinking genius that I am, I deduced my mistake about half-way to the next mile marker, and got myself calmed down and re-focused on the goal. I am clearly a noob at this running stuff. (N.B. In the years since writing this report, I have missed mile markers in many races. It happens all the time, to racers of all experience levels. In addition, sometimes the mile markers are missing entirely, and sometimes their placement is wrong. Therefore its important for runners to learn to develop and trust their pacing skills, and not to rely entirely on course markings or Garmin readings.)
Side Stiches Suck
The only truly negative part of the race was the side stitch that I developed in mile 10 that refused to go away. I don’t normally get side stiches, so it was quite annoying (as well as quite painful). I’ll probably blame the gel I took after mile 9, but who really knows with these things. Bottom line is, you suck it up and keep running. I lost a small amount of time as the pain distracted me during a point when I really needed to concentrate in order to maintain pace. (N.B. Again, another good lesson for new runners. Obstacles happen in races: side stitches, stomach pain, chafing, blisters, and so forth. Learning how to overcome these hurdles is one of the challenges of becoming a better racer. Not one of the more fun challenges, I concede.) Somewhere in mile 12 the pain subsided, and I was able to finish with a strong last mile and a good kick to the finish. I think I did the best I could do on that given day, and you can’t help but be happy about that.
Mission Accomplished
And my reward for this feat? One day off, and then back to the marathon training with a vengeance. My first marathon coming up, and the date just keeps getting closer and closer.
Splits and Stats
Here’s my splits and HR (heart rate) detail, as well as my finishing stats:
Time: 1:42:36 (PR)
Pace: 7:50/m
Overall Place: 993 out of 7214 (top 14%)
Division Place: 150 out of 625 (M 35-39) (top 24%)
Gender Place: 796 out of 3486 (M) (top 23%)