Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Boilermaker 2009: Part II

Yes I know part one was a tease...but I got busy and didn't want to rush through the post just to get it up so everyone could read it! So now I present part two:

Every year I run this race, the 9.3 miles go by in such a blur and this year was no exception.

As I crossed the start line, the chips attached to all the runner's shoes beeped. Its a funny sound and has signaled the start of every race for me the past 5 years.

The first mile was decent - I felt the nervous jitters seep out of my legs and I pounded the pavement at a comfortable pace. I did minimal weaving and dodging around other runners and felt like I had made a good choice to start closer in the yellow area. The first mile is slightly hilly and stretched out in front of me I could see thousands of runners bobbing up and down.

Mile 2 was also uphill and this mile is known as the international mile because of all the cultural bands, dancers and people that stand along this area. I enjoy hearing all the music and seeing all the people as I run but I know that I miss a lot because I am partially focused on running.

I found a group of cross country girls for mile 3 and went too fast and started feeling a little drained but my pace felt good. Mile 4 was in the golf course and this is where my favorite hill is because it also contains the best downhill! As I was climbing the golf course hill I saw a race photographers trying to get people to wave to the camera so I took that chance to be goofy. We will have to wait and see how I look once they post the pictures!! I ran the downhill mile so fast and then continued into mile 5 too fast and by the time I reached the deadly hill at mile 6 I was feeling it.

I mentioned before about my knees and I was feeling them through most of the race. The pain did not start out as badly as it had been on my last run that previous Thursday but it was still slightly present. I think the adrenaline of the race helped to keep it at bay or maybe the two rest days prior to the race.

My knees definitely hurt at mile 6 and onward until the end. I knew I was slowing down on the uphill and picked it back up on the downhill into mile 7 and 8. This is the point in the past races where I have wanted to go faster but my legs just wouldn't do it. I had little trouble until I was halfway into the ninth mile and there was a slight uphill before the "final 0.3 mile downhill" to the finish. It was horrible...I just wanted the race to be over with because my knees were hurting badly.

I finally made it past the nine mile maker (which along with all the other mile markers stands permanently in the ground year round!) and I started looking for Brian. He had brought his camera to take pictures and I wanted to make sure I saw him. He caught a few pictures of me before I noticed him and could smile and make sure I looked happy! The finish line is the most packed during this race...there are so many spectators yelling and cheering, its an incredible feeling!

Crossing the finish line was amazing because I finally got to stop running. I took off my chip from my shoe and received my finishers pin! I had been keeping track of my splits throughout the whole race so I knew I was on course for a PR. The weird part is that I feel like I could have gone faster, except for the whole knee hurting part because I felt good the whole race!

My chip time was 1:13:07 which is a 3 minutes PR from last year! It was amazing running that fast and I totally believe that the longer slow distance running is to blame. I never ran that fast pace for my long runs!

Here are my mile splits from my watch:
Mile 1 - 8:10
Mile 2 - 7:57
Mile 3 - 7:43
Mile 4 - 8:08 (favorite uphill)
Mile 5 -7:02 (favorite downhill)
Mil e 6 - 7:34
Mile 7 - 8:20 (uphill)
Mile 8 - 7:29 (downhill)
Mile 9 - 8:17 (almost dead)
Last 0.3 - 2:20

Here is some more stats for you:
Chip Time - 1:13:07 (7:51 pace)
358th female finisher
Age group - 95/725

Gun time - 1:14:54 (8:03 pace)
338th female to cross the finish line
Age group - 89/725 to cross finish line

First 5k - 24:44
Second 5K - 23:37 (48:21 10k split)
Third 5k - 24:46

This post is already long so I'll post pictures tomorrow for an early photo Friday!!

Now that the race is over, I am resting. I took Monday and Tuesday off and tried to run this morning (Wednesday) and I almost didn't make it the 1.8 miles I set out to do. My right knee was in so much pain and after the race I had trouble bending my knee and going down stairs. I think its runners knee but I have never had this much pain before so I am slightly worried. I have been icing and taking the "drugs" and I am going to wait until Sunday or Monday to try running again and hopefully be pain free!

Thanks for reading this race report. This Boilermaker has to be the best one yet!! But I say that every year!! Happy running!

22 comments:

Marci said...

Great job, that is smoking fast!

Jamie said...

Great job speedy! Congrats on the PR!!! Take care of that knee. Some time off sounds like a good plan :)

X-Country2 said...

Speedy lady! Great job on the PR. Take care of that knee and rest up.

The Laminator said...

Congrats on your awesome race J...so incredible given your knee issues. Very nice stats and I can see why you rave about this race. It really does sound like so much fun!

EndorphinBuzz said...

That is super fast, congrats!

As for your knee, I have had knee problems as well in the past and what helped me is proper warmup and cooldown stretches as well as strengthening exercises. Depending on where the pain is (front or back of knee) you can find out what kind of problem it is.

I would advise against training on it if it is painful. I did that mistake and was out of training for much longer than I would have wanted because of the extra damage I did.

My knee still is sensitive once in a while but it's manageable now that I know why and how to fix it.

Anonymous said...

Well done. Congratulations on a huge PR. Way to hold strong for the whole race.

Anonymous said...

Great job!!!

My knee is usually very sore after a race although I am learning to manage it better with a lot of ice, stretching, massage and advil! It does sound like ITB, or runners knee....both just take time and care :)

Anonymous said...

Congrats on the PR!! I love the commentary (almost dead) - haha that means you ran hard!! :)

Marlene said...

Congratulations on the PR! I think it's awesome that you've been faster every single year. Stellar time!

What a bummer about the knee pain, especially since you feel it may have held you back. I hope you start to feel better soon.

Glenn Jones said...

Great race J! Congrats on the PR. 3 minutes over 9 miles is a huge improvement.

Now to take care of that knee. Rest and Motrin are good. Check out this website: http://www.sportsinjuryclinic.net and go to knee injuries. If the pain does not subside, take advantage of your new employer's medical insurance and go see a doc. Knees are not something to mess with, especially if the pain is "inside" the joint or behind the knee cap.

Best of luck.

Mel -Tall Mom on the Run said...

There were some FAST people in that race. You did REALLY well, congrats on your PR.. Can't wait to see the photos, especially the goofy ones. Ice those knees!!! It helps..

Felice Devine said...

You did a GREAT job! Congrats on the PR and the awesome race overall. Terrific!!!

I would get the knee checked out, just to be sure.

Nicole said...

Great job speed racer! You rocked! Can't wait to see pictures!!! :) :) :)

Aron said...

CONGRATS!!!!! you did amazing! nice job on the 3 minute PR!! i am happy to hear you think the slower training paid off :) :)

Julia said...

Great job and great race report! It's amazing you have such a clear memory of when thing happened during the race.
I'm sorry about your knee pain. I wonder what could be causing such intense pain? I think a doc or a physical therapist might really be able to help you identify what's wrong. Take care!

No Longer Using said...

WOW! that is a HILLY course!!! def hard on the knees. def take some time to rest them up!!!!! you did AWESOME- 3 min PR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! outstanding! way to push yourself, great recap, congrats :) yay-- love pictures- can't wait :)

I Run for Fun said...

You are one speedy lady! Congratulations on a great race.

Jeri said...

3 Min PR!!! WHOOOOO! Way to rock the race. :D Take some time to get that knee healthy. Running is NO fun when you're in pain. Congrats again. Smokin' fast time too. :)

Amy said...

Awesome race! 3 minutes is huge!!

N.D. said...

You did amazing! great job!

Brian said...

Great job. A 3 minute PR is fantastic.

Being Robinson said...

nice job on the PR! that's fantastic. sounds like a FUN race too.