Luke - 14

Eugene Half Marathon, 77:25 (28th place)
I didn't really "gear up" for this race, and I got free entry and was planning on just having fun and seeing what I could do, but I did get a bit excited in spite of myself.  I noticed as I was doing so and tried to calm myself down, but it's tough when the race itself is so big.  Everyone at work asked if I was running, so there was a little more pressure knowing that everyone would be asking how I did.  I was a bit restless the night before.  Got up at 5:20 and had some tea, took a shower and shaved, and then walked one block and got on the shuttle from the high school parking lot to a couple blocks from the start line.  Headed over to the room where the other elites were hanging out and chilled out for a couple minutes before starting my warmup.  Just did a few laps around the turf field and had a bunch of caffeinated gels, then went to the bathroom.  We headed over to the start line about ten minutes before the 7am start, and I did some strides with the other people at the front.

The plan was to go out at 5:40, then try to hit 5:30s the rest of the way.  First mile was 5:38 and felt good, but when I tried to pick it up I didn't really have much more.  Second mile was 5:37 and I thought maybe I'd be able to pick it up from there, but it just started getting harder.  Third mile was another 5:38; I was sorta running with two guys in white who were doing the full marathon, and a guy in blue was just in front of us.  The fourth mile was uphill for the first third, flat for the middle third, and downhill for the last third, and I managed a 5:44 on that.  The fifth mile was 5:51 and felt like a sprint, and I knew it'd be tough going for the rest of the race.  The guys in white went ahead and passed the guy in blue but I didn't make up any ground.  Kept trying to reel him in but just didn't have that next gear.  Miles 6 and 7 were 5:43 and 5:42.  Saw Zack just before mile 8 and he later said I looked pretty ragged, and I certainly felt so.  The eighth mile had a few hills (net uphill) and I hit 6:00; the ninth mile had a few hills (net downhill) and I hit 5:54.  I was really feeling like death but all along the road were spectators, and cheers definitely help me out...just before the nine mile mark there was a big crowd but no one was really making any noise so I put my hands out and did that raising motion and yelled "C'mon, I need you!" and they all cheered and I sped up a bunch and felt great...for about ten seconds.  A little after that the course went into a much more desolate neighborhood and I was pretty much all alone for almost a mile.  Mile 10 was 6:19, just crawling.  Right about at the ten mile mark the course goes onto the bike path, and a guy I know came up behind me and I was able to go with him for about five seconds before he broke away.  The path goes under the railroad tracks and there's a very short tunnel that is split into two sides; I went into the right side as he went into the left side and he was about gone by the time I came out three seconds later.  Just behind him was Josh Gordon, who was running with our friend Kevin who was doing the full marathon.  I was able to go with them for a little longer, almost a mile.  The half marathon course splits from the full marathon course at about mile 11, and I was only a couple seconds behind when he split off so I was able to give him a few words of encouragement.  Josh sped up a bit and I was unable to go with him, but he and Kevin had pulled me along to a 6:05 11th mile.  I was alone again for the twelfth mile, and there were about zero spectators since it was on the bike path and not along the marathon course.  My concentration probably faded, since that 12th mile was 6:42 (yikes).  Just before the mile marker a guy and the lead female came up behind me.  That pedestrian 6:42 was pretty much a recovery mile, so I was able to go with them relatively easily.  After maybe a quarter mile I started pulling away, and encouraged the lead female to go with me, but I had picked it up too much for her to do so.  I ended up putting a good bit of distance on her and the guy, and my final 1.1-mile split was 6:26 (~5:50 pace).

Got my medal and talked with a few people in the finishing area before heading to the bathroom--my stomach had been hurting the last ~3 miles of the race.  Talked to Zack a bit after that, and then headed back to the elite room where my stuff was, and put it on between bouts of leaning my head against the wall while thinking, "Ugggghhhhhh", and went to the bathroom again there.  Headed back to the finishing area and got some Gatorade and water, and grabbed a thing of chocolate milk (and a promotional Got Chocolate Milk? towel) for later, then laid down on the turf in lots of pain, just feeling miserable.  After probably fifteen minutes of that I was able to slowly walk home (less than a mile), passing all the half-marathon walkers that were about 8 miles in.  Spent the rest of the day trying to relax, sitting on the toilet, and just generally feeling like crap.  Not the greatest day in the world, but really it wasn't all that bad.  Like fishermen always say, "Beats the hell outta spending the day at the office hur hur hur!"