Race Report: Alamo 13.1

All week long, I kept refreshing race day weather for San Antonio. It was cooler than normal all week long (really reducing my planned pool and tan time; at one point I had to leave the pool because I was covered in goosebumps! Me! Who never gets cold!). The forecast remained the same: Sunday would be the nicest day of the trip. 67* at the start of the race and 99% humidity. I decided to adjust my game plan dramatically.

New plan: long run at my higher end of the long run pace. My current long runs range from 10:20-11, so in the 10:45-11:00 pace. Long run with a medal at the end! yes!


Our hotel was super close to the race start so I hung out there to have access to a bathroom. My stomach was the best it's EVER been before a race which was so exciting. I'm not sure if it was because I had adjusted race goals/expectations or if it was my meal the night before. TBD. I spent all day Saturday hydrating in preparation for a hot and humid run, and drank a bunch before we left our hotel. By the time we got to the race start, I had to pee. And I couldn't find portapotties anywhere. I snapped a quick pic with Kyle before venturing off to find some a bathroom.

I kept venturing around looking for portapotties and no one seemed to know where any were. When someone finally pointed me in the right direction, it was 7:15 and the race was ready to start! Sometimes I have to nervous pee when I don't really have to pee, so I hoped that was the case, and stayed in the corral. My cheeks already had sweat building up on them. The race started about 10 minutes late (grrrr) so I could've used the bathroom. And we were off!

Very quickly into the run I realized that I wasn't experiencing nervous pee symptoms and started looking for a portapotty. I was very uncomfortable from the first step. We ran around near the River Walk until I spotted a Starbucks during mile 2 and quickly ducked in (this isn't the first time that Starbucks has come just in the nick of the time during a race; it's why I'm okay spending so much money there :P) I spent about a minute in the bathroom before making my way back to the race.

1. 10:54 
2. 11:40 (bathroom break 1 minute) 

All of mile three and the first half of mile 4 was the one uphill in the race, but boy did it feel like we were going up, up, up!! I really didn't pay attention to the race elevation at all, so I didn't realize that was the only hill. Ignorance is bliss sometimes, I guess.

3. 10:52 
4. 11:02 

Around mile 5 I started to notice that I was feeling pretty good, and that my heart rate wasn't going too crazy. At this point I was staying in that slower end of the long run range, and my heart rate was staying in my long run range as well. I decided if I still felt good, I would try to pick things up a little at the halfway point. I feel like 6 miles is a sufficient amount of time to suffer in a half, right?

I distracted myself for awhile planning out the last six miles. My plan was to drop to 10:30 for two, then 10-10:15 for two, and then the last two as hard as I could.

5. 10:39 
6. 10:40 

By the time mile 7 hit, I was ready to turn up the effort level, and we were running through a really cool nature preserve/foresty type area. And the path was gravel. Not exactly ideal for picking up the pace. I concentrated on upping the effort level but not being too concerned with pace. The next surface we encountered can best be described as cement that someone has taken a jackhammer to, and then left all the little destroyed bits to dig into your foot and cause for uneven terrain. Harumph. Then back to the gravel. And then I started to get TIRED.

7. 10:39 
8. 10:45 
9. 10:38 
10. 10:35 

The last 5k I was ready to be done. I tried to pick up the pace, and while my paces don't reflect it, I was working HARD. In comparing my heart rate data from this race to the Dallas half in January, my heart rate was almost identical for the average and the maximum, and I ran a full 10 minutes faster there! Craziness. I cranked up my music and just put my head down. With a half mile left I tried to kick in to my final sprint....ish. Based on my horrific finishing photo, my form went to crap somewhere in the end of the race. Heel striking like a crazy fool (no wonder I was SO SORE after this race + all the random surfaces, I suppose).

11. 10:15 
12. 10:29 
13. 10:34 
.26 2:22 (8:56 pace)

13.26 miles in 2:22:04 (10:43 pace)

Average HR 160 Max HR 175

I crossed the line, grabbed a medal and Kyle found me immediately. I made him play paparazzi briefly before we headed back to the hotel. I had big goals of hitting Chipotle as soon as it opened (there's no Chipotle in SoDak), so I was hustling.

Race Result

Overall852 / 1905 (44.7%)

Ages 30 - 3474 / 168 (44%)

Gender351 / 1060 (33.1%)