(By the way, I am well aware of the ethical dilemma surrounding the use of someone else’s bib in a race. If you wish to chew me out, do so in the comments.)
My original plan was to just relax and have fun at this race. I had already smashed my goal at the Modesto Half Marathon and this race just kind of fell into my lap, so I figured I’d run comfortably and enjoy the beautiful scenery. However, I abandoned that plan when I saw that the run had pace groups, which is something I’d never seen before for a half marathon. I started thinking that maybe I should go the other direction and try to shave even more time off my PR by using one of the pacers to pull me along. I went back and forth, but ultimately the competitive side of me won the argument and I got ambitious – I decided I would try to hang with the 2:00 pacer and see if I could ultimately get a race time that started with a “1.” If I didn't succeed, no big deal.
I showed up early to the starting point (the Boardwalk) and got to enjoy some very beautiful sunrise scenery. Eventually, people started filing in and the place started to get crowded. I escaped the masses by doing a warm-up mile along the pier.
The beginning part of the run was great. We went along West Cliff drive over some gently rolling terrain, past Natural Bridges State Park, and along the bike path that runs parallel to Highway One. I felt great and I ended up making some really good time. After about five miles into the race, we hit Wilder Ranch State Park, where we ran a trail loop that took us along the coastal bluffs. I was excited for this part of the run because I love this park and its views, but in this particular race, this was where I started hurting a little. I’m not sure if it was the introduction of more hills or the change in terrain, but my legs started to feel a little heavy. Ultimately, I was able to push through, though it didn’t feel promising when I got back to the bike path. I was a little worried that my pace would begin to drop.
This was also my first race with a real running watch, so I actually have pretty accurate splits for the race. They are:
Mile 1 - 9:50
2 – 9:08
3 – 9:09
4 – 9:33
5 – 9:02
6 – 9:23
7 – 9:29
8 – 9:47
9 – 10:03
10 – 9:57
11 – 9:37
12 – 10:10
13 – 9:35
Pretty happy with the consistency in the first half, but I need to work on making the second half of my races match my first.