We got up at 6 and got dressed quickly and made breakfast. We stopped by the lobby to get coffee and the crew (Mallory, Devin and Brian) took the shuttle to the start for the 10k while I took an uber to my race start since it was up on Paramount Ranch. The GPS mapped us a weird way with lots of closures and after 10 min ended up about 2 min from the hotel haha. I got to the race start at 6:55 and waited in line for the real restroom and finished my bagel. We had eaten so much the night before and I just wasn't hungry. I had 75% of my bagel and didn't touch my banana.
I then stretched on a fence (we were at Ranch after all) and finished my Ucan vanilla with protein and was feeling very full.
MILE SPLITS: 10:09/10:07/10:34/11:32/9:12
Not totally wrong but I could see my average pace and I was thinking I needed to get to a 10:08 pace but really needed closer to a 10:12 pace. I was running on feel but I may have played it differently had I done the math correct.
This part was gorgeous! Still couldn't see much but we went past mansions and themed restaurants and I loved it.
One thing of note was we were on one lane and cars were next to us. At every cross street there was a cop or volunteer helping with traffic. Sometimes I had to go outside of the cones to pass people but I always made sure to check for cars first. Since the race was small, we actually spread out pretty well and I never felt like I was boxed in or couldn't control my pace which was a first for me!
MILE SPLITS: 9:48/9:42/10:08/10:16
We turned off the main road and towards the finish. People were struggling and slowing down and I was trying not to get too discouraged and just keep focused. The incline was not fun but we hit the last water stop, crossed the freeway and headed towards where the 10k finishes.
We went through the Old Agoura ranch and through a very quiet neighborhood and I knew I had enough left in the tank to push the pace and see how close to 2:15 I could get. We went through a few more hills (which I had to walk!) and up to the dirt trail close to the finish. I knew how close we were so I decided to give it everything I got. The trail has rocks everywhere so I had to be really careful not to fall. We hit the tail end of the 10k people so I had to weave a bit but we came off the trail and to the street where we would merge with the end of the 5k crowd. I decided to give it all I had. I was huffing and puffing down the stretch and knew I would be so close. We didn't merge with the 5k until the very end and I had to be careful not to run into anyone.
The end of the race finishes on grass-gah! So I tried my best but knew I would just miss my PR-dang it! The clock said 2:14 so I knew I hadn't started a minute after the start so darn!
MILE SPLITS: 10:07/10:49/10:19/9:36/7:20 (FINAL .24 MILES) (holy crap-that last .24 was way faster than my 400 repeats)
See below for the elevation map-wow, it was a lot and I did pretty well through most of it (including the incline at the end).
My stats:
2:13:53 (39 seconds off my PR)
Place: 225 out of 529 (top 42.5%)
Gender Place: 100 out of 309 (top 32.36%)
F25-29: 10 out of 40 (top 25%)
I would recommend this race to anyone that wants a fun and uncrowded race but also wants some hill training. Next year I already signed up to do the Great Race again but only the 10k. The downside to the half is that the post race food was SO crowded and I love to eat after. Also then I have a bit more time after the race to get ready and relax.
Have you ever done a really hilly half?