It’s done. All of it. Not only my 2011 Race Season but the longest race I have ever done – Goofy’s Race and a Half Challenge, 63.3 km over two days (21.1 on Saturday and 42.2 on Sunday). I can’t help but feel a little melancholy. This is the first time in months… maybe more than a year… that I don’t have a race planned, scheduled and paid for. Weird feeling but more on that another time. First – The Goofy!
We arrived in Orlando on Thursday morning (we being Team in Training “Canadian Flex”) and headed to the hotel. Everything went smoothly (once my weekend of gastrointestinal issues were resolved) and we settled in nicely.
Friday, during the day, I pushed my dad around in a wheelchair at Epcot… not exactly what I had in mind for a pre-race activity – UG! Then at 5pm, we had our usual Inspiration (pasta) Dinner with many guest speakers who not only pulled at our heart strings but also encouraged us to set the bar incredibly low – this is something I have an issue with. Team In Training needs to shake off it’s attitude of being a bunch of slow-pokes… but that is for another blog.
I ate sparingly and went to bed early (9:30pm) since we had to be up at 2:45am to leave for the start line at 3:30am to race at 5:30am. Yuck!
Day 1 – Half Marathon:
Fuel:
- 4 Extreme Endurance before and 4 after
- I pack of 7Systems
- 1 Banana
- 2 scoops of Living Fuel SuperGreens
- 1 small cup of coffee
- 1 GU Roctane 15 minutes before the race and one every 30 minutes during the race (alternating between Vanilla Orange and Plain).
- Aid station water to drink – 3 sips every station
Coach Ben said: Stay in mid to high Zone 3 up to the 10K mark, then slowly build to low to mid Zone 4 for next 5K. For final 5K, go to pain cave and run HARD! Remember, you’ll be tapping a totally different energy system for the marathon, so you can afford to go hard for the half.
Runner Brock did: I pretty much nailed the Heart Rate Zones. I started off a little high but got it back under Control. I was able run harder and faster at the end of the race than I ever have been able to before. It was a GREAT feeling. I was 15 minutes slower than my PB for a half marathon (set in May 2011) which explains some of the gas left in the tank.
* Finished in 1:46:50
Ate and drank well immediately after the race, had a decent lunch and 1 can of sweet potatoes with a small simple pizza for dinner. Focused on hydration and simple food. Alternated between the hot tub and the pool a few times and foam rolled in the evening.
Day 2 – Marathon:
Fuel:
- 4 Extreme Endurance before and 4 after
- I pack of 7Systems
- 1 Banana
- 2 scoops of Living Fuel SuperGreens
- 1 small cup of coffee
- 1 Roctane 15 minutes before the race and one every 40 minutes during the race.
- Aid station water to drink – couple sips nearly every station
Coach Ben said: Begin in Zone 2. Sounds boring, but your goal is to hold that aerobic pace with a high cadence and relaxed form all the way up to mile 13. At that point, you may notice some “cardiac creep” and a slow rise in heart rate up into Zone 3. That is normal and you should hold yourself in Zone 3 but out of Zone 4 until 20 mile mark. At 20 mile mark, your goal is to “drain your body” for next 10K. It will hurt, but you know that already. Push up into Zone 4, and for last 2 miles, lay it all on the line and go hard as possible.
Runner Brock did: It was hard to keep my hear rate that low – I felt good and I wanted to get moving! I did my best to stay in control no matter how many people passed my slow moving ass. Around 20km I saw Theresa and we ran a chatted a bit and I picked up my pace by accident. A few seconds (not even minutes) after Theresa left me (for a bathroom break), a TNT Coach from Chicago started running with me and I continued to maintain that quicker pace. After he dropped off, I took a break, got my heart rate back down and started in again… but I never really got back to low zone 3. No problem though – I had plenty left in the tank for a fast finish and felt great through Epcot, down the chute and across the finish line. I was 40 minutes slower than my PB for a Full Marathon (set in November 2011) which once again explains my ability to push harder at the end.
* Finished in 4:11:22
In hindsight, it was easier than I expected it to be… not to say that it was easy… but I could have pushed more and dug deeper – BUT – having nothing to compare this race to (I’ve never even done an ultra) it was probably a good idea to err on the side of caution.
I had an unofficial goal (that I dreamed up during the race) of trying to finish both races under a combined time of 6 hours. I managed to squeeze under by 3 minutes! I’m pretty proud of that but I really don’t have anything to compare it to so… yay?
Managed to go to the Magic Kingdom in the afternoon and ride some rides with Franny! I was tired and stiff but didn’t feel as bad as I did in Chicago after only running a marathon. Miraculous!
Am I glad I did the Goofy? Yes. Would I do it again? Maybe… probably not… certainly not in Disney. That place is freaky (people were more interested in taking pictures with princesses than running the race) and not for me. That is all I will say. I am however extremely proud that I managed to raise $5350.00 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Huzzah!
What’s next? I don’t know yet. Triathlon for sure and probably a 70.3 distance but I need to get my own coaching season straight, figure out when we are taking our big vacation and shake off this melancholy feeling I have going on right now – I will race again, I just don’t know when.