Quicksilver 1/2 Marathon

Summary: I ran well considering the sore abs from the day before. Accomplished most of my goals except meeting Chad. The weather was a little warmer than I expected and taking the Ultimate Direction bottle with me worked out well. Note to self: Do not work on conditioning too hard the day before.

My goals were as follows:

1. Make it to the race on time.

Accomplished: Made it on time, thanks to Judy my love.

2. Finish the race without major injuries

Accomplished: Finished the race without major injuries. Although my legs were pretty sore after the race and I had a stomach cramp too.

3. Try to break 1:40

Accomplished: My time was 1:35:42, so I broke 1hr 40min. Good enough for the 1st place.

4. Meet Chad

Did not accomplish: According to his e-mail, he had a big party the night before and woke up with a bad headache long after the race had finished.

5. Get into top 3

Accomplished: My time was good enough for the 1st place this year, but normally this time is 3rd or 4th place finish time. From what I know, my time is the slowest 1st place time of all time, which sucks. My goal for next year is to beat this time and show improvement.

Here is a quick table comparing the time from my training run (9/21) vs. the race time (9/28).

Silicon Valley Marathon

In its 11th year, this year’s race had a smaller field (690 finishers) than the last year’s at 763.

Summary: Even though I did not meet my key goals, I PR’d on my marathon time, met fellow runners from previous races including Mt. Madonna and Quicksilver. The time difference between the first half and the second half has improved from 2006 (14 min), but still has room for more improvement (8 min). This race has made me re-evaluate my training plans. For future marathon training I will focus on 1) pacing the first half and 2) keeping consistent pace after 2 hours when my pace dropped from 6:50min/mile to over 7min/mile.

My goals for Silicon Valley Marathon were as follows:

1. Get to the race on time.

Accomplished: I got to the start line around 6:20am and had a plenty of time for warm-up. The temperature was in the low 50s and the sky was clear with hardly any wind.

2. Finish the marathon with no injuries.

Accomplished: I did not cramp up during or after the race. My legs were hurting a little after the race, but it went away after 15 min.

3. Finish under 3 hrs.

Did not accomplish: I finished in 3:01:52. The first half was 1:26:52 and the second half was 1:34:56, almost 8 minutes slower. For future races, I will make sure to pace the first half.

4. Finish in the top 10

Did not accomplish: I was 11th overall. At first half, I was in 11th place (according to the people at the aid station). I passed the guy in front of me around mile 18 when he slowed down. I passed two guys around mile 20 where one guy was cramping up. Then, Ken (pictured below) passed me at mile 22 and a guy in a red shorts passed me at mile 23. A guy with a backpack passed me and the guy in the red shorts shortly after. I tried to catch up to the guy in red shorts at mile 26, but he saw me and he started booking it too. My last 0.2 mile time was 1:25, so not too bad. I ended up getting 2nd place in my age group (30-35), but the 1st place guy was also 2nd place overall, so the organizers bumped me up and I got a first place prize for my age group which was a free coupon for Etonic shoes.

5. Get sponsored by my company

Did not accomplish: It was unlikely that they would sponsor me since I did not finish in the top 10. However, my boss has spread the news to the president and I got a big pat on the back from the president for doing so well right for coming back from London business trip two days prior to the race. Actually, I used that trip as a taper, so it wasn’t so bad, but there may be a chance that they will at least pay for my next registration fee.

Race results (I'm 11th)

http://www.onlineraceresults.com/race/view_race.php?race_id=9641

Pics!

This is a guy I met on the way – forgot his name.

Third finisher Matt Fitzgerald, the author of such books as Brain Training for Runners, Complete Triathlon Book, and Guide to Cross Training (I have his autograph for Brain Training for Runners and Guide to Cross Training. No, they're not on Ebay ). He finished 3rd in 2:41 which was also his PR (You can read about it in his blog at http://mattfitzgerald.org/blog/?p=163)

Ken, who placed 8th.

Jolly Mexican runners I met at Mt. Madonna Challenge. Whoa, I look so pale!

Started 10 minutes late... but still managed to get 1st place in my age group!

That's Mattew, Chad, and me from right to left. Mattew placed 2nd place in the age group. Chad placed 2nd overall.

I left the house around 7:20am on my bike to Almaden Quicksilver County Park to run at the Quicksilver Challenge 10K race. The New Almaden entrance was about 10 miles from home, but I took a wrong turn on the way and made a big loop and wasted a couple of minutes. I thought the race started at 8:30am, so I was thinking I still had time when I arrived there a little after 8:00am. But, the race had already started at 8:00am sharp, and there were only two or three people attending the registration table and the finish line. So, I got my bib, pinned it to my shirt, changed my shoes and took off.

The piece of Powerbar I gorged down right before I took off was stuck in my throat for a while, but I've managed to swallow it (or spit it out) by the time I got to the steep single-track on the Day Tunnel trail. Another steep, but short climb followed on the Great Eastern trail. Everyone was nice and stepped aside for me My quads are still sore from running down the English Camp Trail.

The result:

57:10 -- 7th overall. (1st in my age group!)

44:48 on my watch. So, I started out 12 minutes late!

I met Chad Deherrera, a semi-pro mountain biker who lives just down the street from the park. He's a great guy. Quiet, reserved, and one helluva runner. He ran in his beat-up New Balance that looks like he's been wearing them since high school and the sole looked completely worn out (and he still managed to beat my time!). I'm sure he would run faster with the right shoes. I met him last week at the Almaden Times Classic 10K where he also beat me in the last mile. He ran the Quicksilver 10K in 43:56 - 2nd place overall. I will be cheering for him at San Jose Rock ‘n' Roll ½ Marathon on 10/14.

I also met Mattew Meyers, a high schooler who attends a local Christian high school. I think he's on the cross country team there. I met him at Mt. Madonna Challenge 12K in August, and also at Almaden TimesClassic 10K, too. Very friendly. I didn't know he was so chatty. We will runthe 5K at the Metro Silicon Valley Marathon on 11/4. It will be a short tune-up race before the Big Sur ½ Marathon on 11/11 which I will be running with my girlfriend (her first ½ marathon).

After the race, I biked to Gilroy to see my folks.

That's me snacking on some carbs in Morgan Hill.