dances with dirt 1/2 marathon race report

beautiful day, great run!

stats:
1/2 marathon
total time: 2:09:00.2
pace: 9:51
overall place: 17 (out of approx 80!)
age group: 3 (less than a minute from the guy ahead of me!)
getting better!

gear:
zem footwear (for 4 miles)
zensah calf compression sleeves
under armour compression base layer
nathan dual 10oz bottle race belt
spi belt
road id (for time tag)

so i hadn't run in about two weeks prior, and the runs were not that long, so race prep was poor.  i also was sick the entire week prior to the race, almost thought i would have to drop out, i leterlly didn't feel up to it till the afternoon prior to the race.  so overall, i'm proud of the race i ran, and i know i can improve.

the course was fast and mostly flat until the last mile, they stuck you right in the swamp with the cypress knees, and a short river crossing, tough and technical for a barefoot guy.  almost beat 2 hours if it wasn't for that last mile.  probably ran about nine mile barefoot.

the crew out there was awesome, they put on a good race, and i will definitely sign up for next years race!  i will also look into other races put on by those crazy northerners running fit, road trip anyone?

notes for next time:

good planning bringing cooked mashed yams and lunch meat, ate some three hours pre, and had it to munch on after the race and the long drive home

the bcaa drink xtend, not sure how it worked overall for performance and recovery, but it did foam up in the race belt bottles, and i felt the foam in my belly...kinda burped it up.  i can say that my muscles are not sore post race, could be my well planned meal strategy with yams and protien.  also, if you stick with the xtend, try lemon-lime, watermelon was really sweet.  maybe next time, try sipping it down pre race for an hour, then finish it off post race

good mix of fuel packing gu and accel gels, along with ziplocks of chia seeds.  didn't need the food provided, and it was plenty light enough to carry.  i guess i need something solid in my stomach, i felt better than i did during the disney marathon

caution on the zem water sock things.  definitely had some rubbing that i didn't notice when i was running out of the gate.  it was cold, and my feet were numb, by mile four, when the feet defrosted, i had to immediately take them off (which I wanted to be barefoot anyway) because of hot spots on the tips of my long toes, and on the inside of the balls of my feet just above my pads.  maybe more running in them, or hopefully cleaner seams in there new running specific model they are coming out with sometime early 2011.  they are perfect to carry for emergencies, nice and light, fit in my pocket

meet a fellow barefoot runner, warren.  nice guy, taught me a great lesson: when running trail, don't look back when someone calls out to you.  you will trip and jack your thumb joint on a root.  just pause, or pull over so you can talk to the person

warren (left) and i after the finish

my cousin stacey taught me something also, find a short run that you are really comfortable with, and remember the distance.  i use "to the light and back".  going out my front door, i can run to an intersection and back to my house, it's three miles, i've run it countless times and can do it fast and with my eyes closed.  why would you want this info, because at the end of a race, you can have that mantra in your head.  as soon as my garmin goes off for lap ten in a half marathon, i only have to run "to the light and back", it speeds me up and helps me push, easy enough, right?

next time, bring the family and camp out so you don't miss the after party!

won a chair