Two weeks before the Surftown Half Marathon, I was in full-on basket case mode: my sleeping and eating patterns were all out of whack; my already frighteningly short attention span grew downright microscopic; my scheduled runs were all over the map in terms of how far they went and how they felt; I even started biting my nails again--a particularly nasty habit that I had as a kid but which still on rare occasion rears its ass-ugly head even now. What I craved at that point was consistency, but what I got was anything but.
So as of today, we're THREE DAYS away from my first half marathon, the Surftown Half (complete with über-stress-inducing three-hour time limit) in Westerly, RI. You would think I would be the ultimate basket case now; and yet, you would be wrong. A few weeks out, you're thinking of all the remaining training to be done, wondering if you could have tried a little harder on the rough runs, pushed a little more on the cross-training, thinking you should have done more strength training, sure you could have done something to help improve your performance on race day. (Most of this panic peaks at the start of Taper Week.) But a few days out, you're fully immersed in focusing on the here and now: any training that didn't happen the way you wanted it to (or didn't happen at all) is a fait accompli; there's nothing you can do to make up for it. At a few days, you just want the race to get here already!!! I've collected a couple of mantras, I've got my three-hour (and a bit) playlist all set in my iPod, I've got all of my venue logistics information printed out, and I already know what I'm packing for the trip (but I won't actually pack until tomorrow...because I'm only slightly psycho/OCD/anal-retentive). And even the weather for Surftown should be ideal for running a half marathon (please let the weather forecast be accurate).
Granted, I still reserve the right to completely freak the fuck out for every minute of the 24 hours preceding the race.
While my 11-mile long run was a bust, my 2012 Dunkin Run went even better than I had planned. My goal was to run comfortably and strong, and to finish feeling as though I could have run more distance if I'd had to. (In other words, I wanted it to be like a training run, rather than a race, since a certain VERY IMPORTANT RACE was exactly ONE WEEK AWAY!!!) I didn't really care about time, but hoped to keep my pace faster than 13:45 ("Surftown Sweeper Pace"--3 hours divided by 13.1 miles). I not only managed to feel stronger and more comfortable than I did at the recent Jailhouse Rock 5k (which was juuuuuuust under Surftown Sweeper Pace), I actually ran the Dunkin in 38:28--about 3:30 better than the Jailhouse Rock 5k.
Every runner (or triathlete) tapers differently for a longer-distance race. Some keep the weekly routine but just ease off on the intensity a bit, while others might be strong enough to need very little (if any) taper. I have a system for recovery post-race (basically, one day of full rest for each hour--or portion thereof--that I needed to run the race; it typically works out to one day of rest after a 5k, two days after a 10k, and I anticipate 3-4 days after a half marathon...but we'll see), but I don't have a system for taper, since this is the first running race for which I've really tapered. (OK, so I tapered for the better part of a week for IronGirl.) I basically went on gut instinct and listening to what my body felt like it needed; we'll see this Sunday morning if I got it right.
So the next blog entry I post here will be post-Surftown. The next entry I write will be as a half-marathoner...or as someone who gave it her best shot and got swept off the course. Either way, I plan on diving headfirst into some seafood afterward.
I'll leave you with my Surftown playlist, a combination of humor, inspiration, pacing, and more than just a hint of hubris:
- Fanfare for the Common Man (Aaron Copeland, Los Angeles Philharmonic)
- Chariots Of Fire (Vangelis)
- Many the Miles (Sara Bareilles)
- One Particular Harbor (Jimmy Buffett)
- Flying Sorcery (Al Stewart)
- Beautiful Day (U2)
- On a Sea of Fleur de Lis (Solas)
- I Gotta Feeling (Black Eyed Peas)
- Call Me Maybe (Carly Rae Jepsen)
- Closer to Fine (Indigo Girls)
- I'm Shipping Up to Boston (Dropkick Murphys)
- Stronger (Britney Spears)
- Standing Still (Jewel)
- Light in Your Eyes (Sheryl Crow)
- Walk Away (Kelly Clarkson)
- F**kin' Perfect (P!nk)
- Firework (Katy Perry)
- Runaway (Avril Lavigne)
- Get Out Of This House (Shawn Colvin)
- Theme from "Greatest American Hero"/"Believe It or Not" (Joey Scarbury)
- Elevation (U2)
- Someday, Someway (Marshall Crenshaw)
- Killin' Kind (Shelby Lynne)
- Desperation Samba/Halloween In Tijuana (Jimmy Buffett)
- My Life Would Suck Without You (Kelly Clarkson)
- Raise Your Glass (P!nk)
- Harder to Breathe (Maroon 5)
- Safety Dance (Men Without Hats)
- Mr. Blue Sky (ELO)
- Go (Kelly Clarkson)
- She's so High (Tal Bachman)
- All Star (Smash Mouth)
- C'mon C'mon/Theme from "Rescue Me" (The Von Blondies)
- Hot Hot Hot (Buster Poindexter)
- Where No One Knows Me (Jann Arden)
- Lust for Life (Iggy Pop)
- She Bangs (Ricky Martin)
- I Do Not Hook Up (Kelly Clarkson)
- Joy Ride (Roxette)
- It's A New Day (will.i.am)
- How Far We've Come (Matchbox Twenty)
- Tessie (Dropkick Murphys)
- Pop Goes the World (Men Without Hats)
- Philadelphia Freedom (Elton John)
- Through Your Hands (Don Henley)
- All American Girl (Melissa Etheridge)
- Walk On the Moon (Great Big Sea)
- (and, if I need another song, "Heroes" by David Bowie)
Whatever form your well wishes take--prayers, positive vibes, good juju--if you wouldn't mind sparing a few moments at 7:30am ET this Sunday to send them toward the southern RI/CT border for me to have a safe and expedient (enough) run through Misquamicut and Watch Hill, I would be most appreciative. Vive la Tortue Enflammé!!!
See you at the finish line...
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