Prerace: I got up at 5:30 with plans to be out the door by 6:30. Since the race didn't start until 8a, I figured I could eat a reasonable breakfast by 6a and still have two hours to rest my stomach. I made an egg beater and cheese breakfast burrito with a big glass of OJ. It then started pouring while I was in the shower....
What I wore: I had picked out my clothes the night before, but still had doubt about my shirt. I ended up wearing:
+ Body Glide antichaffing stuff in all the right places including at waist/bra bands, arms, thighs, feet, etc.
+ Nike Dri Fit Personal Best Capri's (my absolutely favorite bottoms)
+ Nike Dri Fit bra. (actually quite old, and they don't make the style anymore which is why I am still wearing it)
+ Lightweight Nike Dri fit longsleeve shirt. I was back and forth about short sleeves vs long. Ultimately I decided I wouldn't be too hot in long sleeves in the 60-65 degree weather. It would also meant I wouldn't have to wear sunscreen.
+ My new favorite running socks: ASICS Women's Sorbtec® Tab Lowcut Socks. I bought them on Friday as a race splurge. I will now buy many more pairs on eBay.
+ Nike Air Zoom Plus. One of the two original styles of Nike+ that they no longer make. I've been working through the pairs I've been able to find on eBay.
+ Nike Feather Light Hat.
+ Sunglasses (generic). For some reason I usually run in sunglasses even if it's not particularly sunny. Reduces eye strain or something.
I was dressing and realized I was covered head to toe in some sort of moisture-wicking technology except my underwear. Maybe I should change that.
What I packed to bring:
+ Nike Trailwind wind breaker. Okay, I actually wore this enroute to the race since it was still raining, and planned to wear it if it looked the rain would continue.
+ Heavier Nike Dri Fit shirt incase it seemed colder once we got out side.
+ Short sleeved Run to Remember Tech shirt to either wear home or during the race if it seemed appropriate once we got there.
+ SPF 30 lip balm
+ money/Charlie Card/phone/ATM card
+ iPod Nano with Nike +
+ Race number (3628)
What I would bring next time:
+ flip flops or a different pair of shoes for the commute home
+ a bottle of water or poweraide or something to be able to drink on the way home
+ a piece of fruit or spoonful of peanut butter for the same
The race: Fortunately the rain stopped before we got to the Seaport World Trade Center and from the radar, it looked like more rain should hold off until the afternoon. Bag check was easy. There were tons of port-a-potties. We stretched and lined up in the 10 min/mi pace spot. We sang the national anthem which seemed very cool.
And we ran.
The official results aren't up yet, but we finished the first 6 miles in a hour which is the fastest I've ever run 6 miles. I was worried we would run too fast and wouldn't be able to finish. I liked being with "regular people" for whom this was quite an accomplishment as well.
At 7 miles I could see that my Nike+ was ahead by ~0.05 miles, so I paused the workout to "catch up" a bit because who wants your arm to say you're at mile 11.5 when you haven't yet reached mile 11!?!
Mile 9 kicked my butt again. Mile 10 was okay, and 11-13 weren't the easiest but we kept running. We weren't carried off in an ambulance like the two people we saw about mile 11. While we took a couple ~60 second walk breaks at the water stations, we didn't really take a break until mile 10, I think. And then we only walked for 2 minutes.
Overall, my Nike+ seemed to be ahead by ~8%. Given that I've never calibrated it, I can't complain.
We believe our chip time will be 2:25. We crossed the line at 2:27-something, and had been 3 minutes behind the gun time. My goal was 2:30, so I was pleased. It's a 11 min/mi pace overall which is just fine with me.
When we were done we were still walking, not hobbling. We collected our medals and several more cups of water/gatorade. We finished late enough to miss the fruit. There were plenty of bagels and potato chips. Never have I finished running and though, "gee, I could go for some potato chips". We didn't need band aids, and I actually have no blisters.
We meet some very nice people including the guy who convinced me and his sister that bridges might look like hills, but they really get you places. Thanks to Tara who made us run the hills/bridges, too.
Post-race: We took the T back home, feeling bad for the people riding with us. However, we did not reek as much as the sweaty men. We collected Tara's husband & kids, showered, and had brunch. They hung out for a bit, and then I fell asleep on the couch for several hours, remembering that I had napped after our 12 mile run, too.
Post-race Day 1: I feel a bit achy but hungry. I feel a bit like "that was it"? Maybe I didn't quite leave it all out there. Maybe next time we can finish with a 10 min/mi overall pace.
Stay tuned for what is next to come in terms of running and for our official finish times and official race photos.